A group of teenage girls have been charged with seriously assaulting another girl in New South Wales’ Hunter Region.
Police allege a 14-year-old girl travelling on a bus in East Maitland was assaulted by three other girls known to her on August 19.
When the bus stopped on Victoria Street about 4pm, it is alleged the 14-year-old was dragged off the vehicle by her hair and assaulted on the curb by the doorway.
Speaking with Nine News, the 14-year-old and her mother described the callous attack.
“They were swearing at me, telling me to get off the bus, and they finally grabbed me by the hair and dragged me off,” the teenager told the masthead.
“I sat up and one of them booted me in the face.
“The bus driver didn’t say anything, he was just sitting there waiting.
“He was about to shut the doors and I climbed back on.”
A young bystander went to the aid of the 14-year-old, calling her mother, while the three girls ran from the scene.
“I instinctively ran to the bus stop; there was no bus driver there, there was no police there,” the girl’s mother said.
“I saw my daughter passed out at the bus stop with her eye bleeding, a black eye, unconscious.”
NSW Ambulance paramedics treated the girl at the bus stop before transporting her to Maitland Hospital in a serious but stable condition.
Officers from the Police Transport Command were notified and commenced an investigation.
Late on September 4 officers arrested a 13-year-old girl at a home in East Maitland.
She was taken to the police station and is due to appear in a Children’s Court on October 1.
On Tuesday officers arrested two other teenagers.
A 17-year-old girl was arrested at home in Tenambit about 2.30pm and taken to the local station.
She is due to appear in A children’s court on September 17.
Officers also arrested a 15-year-old at a business in Little Pelican and she was taken to Belmont Police Station.
The girl is due to appear in court on September 21.
The trio were all charged with assault causing actual bodily harm and have been granted strict conditional bail.
Police said their investigations are ongoing.
The victim was pulled out of school by her mother three months ago and on the day of the attack she was travelling from TAFE to her mother’s work, Nine News reported.
“Absolutely no way we are going back to a school environment, I don’t think they can get on top of safety at all,” her mother said.
She said she felt the girls had “intended” to kill her daughter.
“They are doing adult crimes, they should be penalised as an adult,” she said.
A video of the attack, which left the 14-year-old with a broken upper jaw and bleeding around the eye, has circulated around multiple teenagers at different schools.
“I just felt really helpless and numb,” the girl said.
“I don’t feel safe anywhere I go.”