Two teenagers have been attacked and robbed in separate incidents in Linwood.
In the first assault, a 15-year-old boy was walking past the vet clinic on Aldwins Road alone at 5pm Saturday, when a group of youths attacked him.
His father said “my son was beaten up and punched multiple times by a group of boys.
They got him on the ground and then robbed him of his shoes.”
The father said his son suffered a split lip and split eye.
It’s understood the group of offenders had been congregating at Linwood Park before the attack.
A resident who lives near the scene said she was “absolutely shocked at how brazen the thugs were.
My husband and neighbour ran over to the boy as soon as we realised what happened, while I called the police.”
The victim’s father said he felt angry that his son was targeted in an unprovoked attack simply for wearing new shoes.
“Has it really got to the stage that my son can’t wear nice shoes or clothes because he might get beaten up?
One day, one of these boys will hit some kid in the wrong place and they won’t wake up.”
The father said, while they were providing a statement to police, news came through that another boy was jumped on and beaten up around the corner on Linwood Avenue, putting him in hospital.
In that attack, they stole the victim’s hoodie.
The father said the reason he wanted to go public was to warn other parents about the dangers of this group of teenagers targeting young people in the area.
A police spokesperson confirmed they responded to “two disorder incidents” in Linwood around 5pm on Saturday.
Two people suffered minor injuries and reported their possessions were taken in the incidents.
“Police have spoken with the injured people to establish the circumstances of the incidents.
Police inquiries continue.”