LOWELL, Mass. — Five Lowell teenagers are being summonsed to court on assault and battery charges after allegedly punching, dragging, and stomping on a 16-year-old sophomore and her father.
It happened after school last Friday at a Subway on Merrimack Street near Lowell High.
Walther Mendizabal told Boston 25 News that it went down minutes after his daughter met him there.
He said that he tried to protect her, but the two quickly found themselves outnumbered by a group of students who were determined to fight.
Cell phone video shows punches being thrown in the doorway of Subway before the beating spilled outside.
Shortly thereafter, the father and daughter both ended up on the concrete shielding themselves from repeated kicks.
“I want people to see the video to see the brutality,” said Mendizabal. “It was over 10 to 15 kids screaming and escalating the fight.”
1 of 4
His daughter managed to get up off the ground at one point and rushed to her father’s aid.
She was thrown back to the concrete and assaulted again by several fellow students.
“They were kicking her over and over on the back of the neck,” recalled Mendizabal. “I was shocked. I couldn’t believe it.”
A police report said that Mendizabal was sucker punched “many times” before fighting back.
It describes his teen daughter defending herself “in a cradle position” while being stomped on.
Mendizabal and his daughter were checked out and treated on scene by paramedics.
They each have scrapes and gashes but neither suffered serious injuries.
“I believe the kids are organizing and planning fights to share on social media,” said Mendizabal. “It needs to stop.”
Mendizabal said that his daughter has been taunted on multiple occasions at Lowell High School since late September.
He’s convinced she was targeted as part of a violent social media trend.
“It’s called Fight Friday,” he explained. “They find someone vulnerable. The kids knew that it was going to happen Friday. This was clearly planned.”
A spokesperson with Lowell Public Schools sent the following statement to Boston 25 News:
”Lowell High School administrators are not aware of any “Fight Fridays” trend. However, when they do hear that an altercation may be brewing between students, they do they best to resolve it before something happens. Off-campus issues can be difficult to resolve because they can include LHS students, non-LHS students and sometimes even adults.”
The district said that the students involved were reprimanded according to school policy, and safety plans were put in place.
Lowell Police have increased patrols at the high school and the surrounding area following last week’s attack.
Three of the students involved are facing charges of assault and battery.
Two of them are being charged with assault and battery with a dangerous weapon – the weapon being their shoes used to stomp.
Mendizabal added that his daughter hasn’t returned to school since the beating and likely won’t return to close out the school year.
He said he’s still talking with his child to decide if she’ll return to Lowell High School next year.
Download the FREE Boston 25 News app for breaking news alerts.
Follow Boston 25 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch Boston 25 News NOW
©2024 Cox Media Group
