Police investigate violent videos of pupils fighting

Rodney Edwards • Published 28 Jan 2010 10:25

POLICE are to launch an investigation after violent videos of Fermanagh school children fighting appeared on the internet, we can reveal.

The graphic footage uncovered by The Impartial Reporter on file-sharing website YouTube.com show reckless teenagers brawling in their school uniforms.

The videos featuring pupils from some of Enniskillen's biggest schools have all been filmed on mobile phones and have been viewed thousands of times.

And we have deliberately blurred out the schoolchildren's faces in our video grabs to protect their identity -- but the internet isn't just as discrete.

In one of the videos, a group of schoolchildren gather around as two young men fight it out: punching and kicking each other. A number of their 'supporters' watching the scramble, join in, pushing and egging the pair on until they both stumble and fall. They land awkwardly on their backs. Then rolling along the ground, their bust-up gets messier, to much amusement from the baying crowd.

The clip which has been viewed 3,382 times, lists not only the school the lads attend, but also their names in its description.

Regarding this particular video, one commentator wrote: "I remember this, awesome fight." While another described it as the: "Worst fyt eva!!!!".

In another video, two young boys from a local school appear to have been forced into fighting with each other as over 30 of their peers watch the lot. The short footage has been viewed 3,979 times and details of who's who are included in its description also. And like the others, the name of the school attended by the children is clearly identified by the uniforms they are wearing.

In another video, entitled: "Fighter Paddy", both boys and girls from schools in Enniskillen gather to watch a brawl between two youngsters at the Ulsterbus Depot. One lad in a hooded top, the other in his school uniform, egg each other on -- nose-to-nose, chin-to-chin -- to see who'll deliver the first blow. It makes uncomfortable viewing. Then a minute into the video, a punch is thrown and the youngster in the hoody is hit in the face. The crowd cheers. As he collapses in pain, the schoolboy continues punching him hard. His face, his throat and his ribs all appear to get a battering. Hordes of school kids line the Depot grounds, watching the fight in their dozens. Then the camera moves to the right -- this time to capture a second fight that has kicked off nearby. But when the camera pans back to the original pair, another youngster has come from nowhere and is now repeatedly kicking and punching the lad in the hooded top. Moments later, an employee from the Depot comes onto the scene but seems unable to control what is unfolding in broad daylight.

The fights which have been filmed over a two year period involve pupils from many secondary schools in Enniskillen.

And the kids aren't just uploading the videos to YouTube either, they are passing the disturbing footage around other social network sites such as Bebo, Facebook and MySpace too. And it's that theme of 'public humiliation' that we have noticed during our investigation that is evident throughout these alarming videos; the mass audience, the egging on, the jeering, the swearing, the naming and the shaming. Every moment shot and uploaded to the internet for the world to see and comment on. It's cyber-bullying at its worst.

We alerted Northern Ireland Commissioner for Children and Young People, Patricia Lewsley to the videos. The Commissioner said: "I am very concerned that young people in the area appear to be engaging in this violent behaviour. I urge the schools, parents and carers to work with the relevant local authorities to help stop this activity immediately."

We also alerted Enniskillen Police. PSNI Inspector Roy Robinson who was "appalled" by what he saw on-line said his officers will now be investigating.

"These are indeed shocking images of youths fighting. I will be asking for this matter to be investigated expeditiously. We will be in contact with the schools to try and identify these students as quickly as possible. If anyone can identify these young people involved I would ask them to get in contact with the police as soon as possible," he said.

Anyone with information is asked to contact Police on 0845 600 8000 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 or on-line at www.crimestopper-uk.org.

Tweet

This article appeared in Impartial Reporter 28 Jan 10

Return to the main index, get more from this section or browse our News archives.