Nine Harmony High School students were arrested Wednesday after authorities said they attacked a 17-year-old boy who had confronted classmates for bullying another student, leaving him bloodied and requiring 11 stitches to his face in an after-school brawl Friday.
The nine male students, ranging in age from 16 to 18, were charged with felony aggravated battery and felony inciting a riot following the Oct. 16 attack near the school, according to the Osceola County Sheriff's Office.
The incident began during lunch earlier in the day when the victim and his girlfriend noticed another female student being bullied in the cafeteria, with carrots being thrown at her. According to Sheriff’s reports, the victim told the students to stop throwing food, leading to a verbal confrontation with two male students. The victim and his girlfriend then attempted to de-escalate the situation by walking away.
Shortly after 2:30 p.m., as the victim was walking to his car through a tunnel near the school, investigators said a 16-year-old struck him. Eight other students joined the attack, repeatedly punching the victim in the face and head. Disturbing cellphone footage of the assault showed several students punching the victim while voices in the background shout, including one who can be heard egging on the attackers and using a racial slur.
The victim’s mother took him to a hospital, where he received 11 stitches to close wounds to his face.
Investigators said the cellphone video of the attack helped deputies identify all nine suspects. Working with Harmony High School staff, deputies arrested the students at the school Wednesday. Two 18-year-olds, Quianelle Antonio Reyes-Cintron and Brian Alexander Ramirez, were booked into the Osceola County Jail. The seven juvenile suspects were transported to the Juvenile Assessment Center.
Sheriff Christopher Blackmon praised the victim for intervening on behalf of the student who was being bullied and issued a warning about violence among students.
"If you put your hands on another student on or off campus, deputies will arrest you," Blackmon said in a statement. "This victim did the right thing by standing up for another student being bullied," he added. "He is the brave one, the nine teens that chose violence against him are the cowards."
Osceola County School District Superintendent Dr. Mark Shanoff also condemned the attack, emphasizing that students are expected to conduct themselves appropriately both on and off school grounds.
"Let me be clear: physical intimidation, threats, or acts of violence of any kind will not be tolerated in our schools or in our community, whether on or off campus," Shanoff said in a statement. "Such behavior is fundamentally inconsistent with the values of our school district and the standards of conduct we expect from every student."
Shanoff said students must be held accountable when those standards are violated and thanked the Sheriff's Office for its partnership with the district.
"We take these matters seriously, and there must be accountability when those expectations are violated," he said.
All nine students face expulsion under the district’s Code of Student Conduct because of their felony arrests, according to Dana Schafer, the Osceola County School District’s chief communications officer.
