Three teenagers are facing assault charges in connection with the videotaped after-school beating of another youth in Castor Gardens on Jan. 28, an attack that some news media have likened to the “knockout game.” According to published reports, the victim attends eighth grade at Woodrow Wilson Middle School at Cottman and Loretto avenues, while the attackers are enrolled at either Wilson or the nearby Northeast High School. A Philadelphia police spokesman reportedly told the Inquirer that a seventh-grade Wilson student videotaped the attack and was among those arrested.
Authorities learned of the seemingly random beating after someone posted the 30-second video on a social media website. The footage shows two youths punching the victim and beating him to the pavement in a driveway between rowhouses. The person filming the attack can be heard laughing as the episode unfolds. Police believe that it occurred near Cottman and Large Street, about two blocks from Wilson. The victim did not suffer serious injuries and did not notify authorities initially.
After viewing the video, police and school officials identified the alleged attackers and victim, who subsequently met with detectives. Authorities have not released the names of those involved because they are minors. ••
