PETERSBURG, Va. — The mother of a Petersburg fifth grader who is on the autism spectrum is calling for criminal charges after she says five students attacked her son on a school bus Monday afternoon.
Keonya Toran says she first learned something was wrong when her three elementary-age children came home Monday crying. Her son told her he had been beaten up.
"He came in, he was crying really bad and he says, 'They beat me up, they beat me up,'" Toran said.
All three children told their mother the same thing about what happened on the bus.
"Five of them punched me in my head," the victim said.
"They started punching real bad on my brother, straight top to the head," his 9-year-old brother said.
"They got up and start punching my brother all up in his face, and my brother started crying," his 8-year-old sister said.
Part of the attack was recorded on a cellphone. A video posted online has been viewed more than 61,000 times. We are showing a blurred version of the video, but are not showing the face of the victim or the faces of his brother and sister, who were also on the bus.
"She sent it to me and when I pressed play, I was immediately disgusted. If you look at the video you can see them standing over top of him, just giving it their all," Toran said. "I was trying to figure out how in the world... I mean, he couldn't really defend himself. They were all over on top of him, like numerous punches."
Monday afternoon, Toran took her son to the emergency room because he was complaining of a headache. She also filed a report with Petersburg Police.
Tuesday morning, Toran went to Pleasants Lane Elementary to speak with administrators. She says she was surprised by what she was told.
"They were waiting for me," Toran said. "They said for safety reason, they would rather them go home."
Toran took all three children home and says she does not know when the school will tell her it is safe for them to return. In the meantime, she says she wants the school to take action.
"They need some kind of consequences. This can't go on," Toran said.
She is also pushing Petersburg Police to file charges against the five students.
"I want charges pressed on these children. We need to learn. We need to set boundaries today," Toran said.
Petersburg Police say they are taking the investigation seriously.
Petersburg City Public Schools provided the following statement:
"Petersburg City Public Schools is aware of a reported physical altercation that took place on a school bus yesterday while transporting Pleasants Lane Elementary School students. We want to assure our community that we are currently conducting a thorough investigation. At this time, we are unable to share specific details but our commitment to the safety and well-being of our students and staff remains our highest priority."
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