14-year-old stabbed in head at Allen Glen High School

What should have been a normal school day on Wednesday, turned into a very sad day for a mother and her son when he became the target of possible bullying.

The Grade 9 pupil of Allen Glen High School went to the school’s bathroom at around 9am on the morning of 10 August. He explained that he suddenly felt someone slapping him across the left side of his face.

“I had to use self defence and I fought back,” said the boy who wishes to remain anonymous for his safety.

He added that he fell down, but managed to get up. “This is when I was stabbed in my head, by another pupil,” he explained.

He added that the boy who stabbed him ran out of the bathroom. “I was treated by the school’s first aid team,” said the pupil. The boy explained that his mother came to fetch him and took him to the Garden City Hospital, where he received eight staples in his head.

His mother explained that the attackers are also in Grade 9 and are actually very good friends of her son.

“I don’t know why they would do something like this. Their stories keep on changing,” said the pupil. He said that as far as he knows, they do not know where the knife is now.

Acting spokesperson for the Gauteng Department of Education, Oupa Bodibe, said it is believed a fight broke out between two pupils over a cigarette. “The one pupil was hit and kicked and allegedly, his head was bashed on the toilet basin,” said Bodibe. He added that another pupil took out a knife and stabbed the victim in his head. “The knife was not recovered,” said Bodibe.

The pupil’s mother said the school was very supportive and urged her to open a case at the police station. “The school phoned three times to make sure my son was okay.”

The boy added that the school did offer him counselling and he will likely be returning to school on Monday (15 August).

On the 11 August, the mother and son went to the Florida Police Station to open a case but failed to do so as they needed to wait for the doctor’s report.

An Allen Glen spokesperson said they would be able to comment on the matter after the disciplinary hearing on 17 August.

“Both perpetrators have been suspended until after the hearing,” said Bodibe. He added that the department strongly condemns bullying in schools.

“The department has conducted a workshop with all principals and the school safety workers to equip them with the necessary information on how to deal with bullying,” concluded Bodibe.

Details: Gauteng Department of Education, 011 355 0000.

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