Student bashed by teens

A GOLD Coast mother is seeking justice for a vicious attack that left her learning delayed son bruised and bleeding.

The Coombabah mother has alleged that her son, a student of Southport Special School, was set upon by a group of teens while walking through the food court at Westfield Helensvale on January 3.

Police say they are still investigating the alleged attack on the 16-year-old Coombabah boy. The assault is the second serious incident involving teenagers to be reported at a Gold Coast shopping centre over the school holidays. In a separate incident, three teenage girls were arrested over a violent robbery at Westfield Coomera on Tuesday.

The Coombabah mother said she was alerted to the fight when she received a call from a centre employee. She arrived to find her son with a bleeding face, ripped lip and swollen eyelids.

The mother said her son, who has development delays, had no history of violence.

“He is a very sweet boy who thinks everyone is friendly, he is 16 but thinks like a 12-yearold,” she told the Bulletin.

“They came up to him and asked him if he had been ‘talking sh*t about my eastside gang’,” she said. The boy was reported to have tried to walk away from the group of teens and was blocked. He was not known to the boys.

As a result of this attack the 16-year-old spent the night in hospital and received stitches for his wounds. He has since been contacted by his alleged attacker.

“They have been harassing him through Instagram, they’ve also called several times.”