Source : Perth Now news
A teenage boy has been arrested after a man was brutally struck by rocks in what is believed to be a targeted attack outside a fast food restaurant in Mandurah.
Confronting footage taken outside the restaurant shows a group of young people approach a 25-year-old man and throw rocks at him.
As a result of the attack the man was knocked out, slumping to the road before being taken by ambulance to Peel Health Campus with serious injuries to his face.
Acting Senior Sergeant Jamie Raper from Mandurah police station said a 14-year-old had been arrested at home in Falcon on Wednesday morning and charged with assault occasioning bodily harm.
Snr. Sgt. Raper said the man was not known to the group of teens and had been protecting restaurant workers.
“We believe there might have been some an altercation earlier in the in the restaurant where the juveniles were potentially harassing some of the workers there, and we believe that this male has stepped in to to protect those workers,” he said.
The 25-year-old will need ongoing treatment for his “severe” facial injuries.
“It’s going to be a long road to recovery, I think,” Snr. Sgt. Raper said.
“WA Police don’t encourage people to to step into incidents . . . Look, what we do is we ask them to call triple zero.
“It’s a public safety thing, we don’t want members of the community hurt.
“We’ll get a police car down there, and we’ll deal with it that way.”
Snr. Sgt. Raper said there had been previous reports of juveniles causing issues in the Halls Head and Falcon areas.
“We are putting measures in place to try and prevent that,” he said.
“We do know some of these kids certainly, so I wouldn’t say it’s a massive problem, but it has been reported to us.
“We do have issues with e-bikes and things like that around the Halls Head area, so we’re looking at additional patrols and things like that to try and stop that.”
Snr. Sgt. Raper had a message for teens living in the area: “You’re certainly not going to get away with it.”
“You’re going to be held responsible for your actions, expect a knock on the door and a visit to the police station.”
Police could bring in drones to monitor their activities.
The 14-year-old who was arrested has been released on bail, but could be hit with further charges when he faces Mandurah Children’s Court on September 14.
Other teenagers could also be charged.
