Kraaifontein pupil assaulted in school

A KRAAIFONTEIN pupil is afraid of going back to school after he was assaulted, allegedly by his classmates.

The 14-year-old grade 8 pupil at a northern suburbs school had to be transported by ambulance to hospital last Friday.

His mother said: “On the second last period before school ends, my son’s class was playing ‘silence in the court’ (if you speak or make a sound you get hit) in their maths class.

“His maths teacher left and went home because she wasn’t feeling well. A grade 12 learner was told to monitor the class, the monitor told them not to play the game but the five boys who attacked my son, decided that they’d play anyway.

“The class was quiet, and my son wasn’t part of the people playing with, he was watching his friend play games on his phone.

“Then while they were watching, his other friend noticed that the boys behind my son were passing around paper and elastic to shoot someone with it.

“They shot at my son and after they shot it he made a sound.

“He then heard the class moving towards him and bags were being thrown at him.

“The heavy bags were being thrown at his head, which caused him to have a bump and immense pain.

“One of the five boys that attacked him, climbed onto the desk and jumped onto my son who fell off his chair and hit his head against a desk, which almost broke his neck.

“The bags were still being thrown at him only by those five boys, while he was on the floor they were kicking him.”

She said the monitor tried to intervene.

“They wouldn’t listen and then he called a teacher.

“When she came in they had already stopped and she told them to stop what they were doing and called the principal.

“My son was already taken to the office by then, they put ice packs on his neck and shoulders.

“An ambulance was called and we went to Karl Bremer, they said he couldn't eat because of his neck and that he'd die if he ate anything, so food was being transfused by a tube.

“Around 4am, they did an X-ray to see if anything's broken, nothing was broken just several bruises.”

The mom opened a case with the police and has asked for a transfer from the school.

“He walks to school and we are afraid they might do something to him and he has been left shaken by the incident.”

The Western Cape Education Department (WCED) said they were aware of the incident.

WCED spokesperson, Bronagh Hammond, explained: “An investigation was done by the school and the learners were suspended. A disciplinary hearing will follow. The school has counselling support available for the victim. The school is cooperating with the police who are conducting an investigation. The WCED district office has been informed of the matter and is making further enquiries.”

Police spokesperson, FC van Wyk, said an assault with the intent to do grievous bodily harm case docket was received at Durbanville SAPS.