By Brendan Rees
A teenager has spoken of the moment he was repeatedly punched and had his head “stomped on“ by gatecrashers at a 16th birthday party in Berwick.
Matthew, 19, suffered bruising and swelling to his face after being approached by the thugs at the front of the Old Cheese Factory on Homestead Road on Friday night, 26 April.
Witnesses at the fancy dress party told Matthew he was “dragged across the ground” where the thugs allegedly pinched his Nike sneakers worth $250.
Matthew said he was looking for a friend when “one Sudanese boy came up to me, put out his arm around me and he’s like ‘have you got the time?’
“I had just checked my phone…I said it’s 11.30. He’s like ‘get your phone out, and show me.’ I said to him ‘I don’t have my phone on me.’ I knew he was going to steal it.
“More of them came over and started to surround me,” he explained.
“From there, I don’t really remember too much….At some point I came back into consciousness and I was struggling to get back to my feet.”
Mathew, who asked his surname not to be identified, said he went to the restrooms to clean his bloodied face with help of partygoers.
“I was told I was king hit a few times and then I was on the ground,“ he said.
“They were stomping on my head and kicking me in the body and in the face.“
He said was left shaken by the incident which was “completely unexpected.“
“Two boys ran over to try and help me but one got king hit in the head,” he added.
Mathew said he was given a lift home by his sister who had to “pull over because I was throwing up.“
“When I woke up my whole body was really sore, I couldn’t open my mouth because my jaw was really sore.“
Matthew reported the incident to police before visiting Casey Hospital. He said his injuries will delay the start of his plumbing apprenticeship this week.
Police are investigating an alleged robbery of a 14-year-old girl who had left the party and was attacked just before midnight, a Victoria police spokeswoman said.
A number of witnesses ran to her aid when they saw a female assault the victim and steal her phone, police say.
Police said the victim was taken inside the venue and was not injured.
The female is perceived to be a youth of African appearance.
Anyone with any information is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
