Warning: Graphic content
After a 16-year-old girl was viciously assaulted at Kempenfest in Barrie, Ont., on Friday, police now say they are looking for a second teen.
Barrie police say she is believed to be involved in the assault on July 31 that resulted in the victim being treated at and later released from hospital.
In an interview with CTV News, the mother of the girl who was attacked says she was told by her daughter that the throwing of a glass jar led to a fight breaking out. That fight later spilled out onto the street at the Lakeshore and Victoria Street intersection.
“She was completely passed out like a rag doll on the cement, and they kept kicking her, and everyone is standing by watching and laughing and cheering and videotaping,” the mom, who spoke anonymously with CTV News, said.
“Not one person stepped in.”
Girl, 15, charged following fight
A viral video shows a violent assault while a group of youths watched. Many of them recorded the incident and cheered the fight on.
On Wednesday, police arrested and charged a 15-year-old girl in relation to the fight. Police confirmed Thursday to CTV News that she was released on an undertaking after being charged and is due back in court at a later date. Police did not provide that date.
Footage from the incident shows a second girl punching the victim and then standing over her before kicking her again, then backing off.
While Barrie police won’t confirm if that is the girl in question that they are looking for due to concerns surrounding identifying an underage suspect, they say a second youth is believed to be involved in the assault.
Police are now asking anyone with information to come forward, and those involved in the incident are encouraged to contact Barrie police as well.
Throughout the investigation, police have said they are disappointed with the bystanders recording and cheering during the fight.
They are also reminding the public that under the Youth Criminal Justice Act, publishing, posting, or otherwise sharing identifying information about anyone under the age of 18 who is involved in the criminal justice system, as a suspect or a victim, is illegal.
CTV News has blurred out all images during the fight to protect witnesses, victims or suspects who may be underage.
