Rotorua Police say they are working with a local high school to determine if they should take action over a brutal student on student assault that occurred on Wednesday.
Footage of a Western Heights High School student viciously kicking another student in the head went viral online yesterday after it was posted on Facebook by an outraged parent whose child also attends the school.
Yesterday, the deputy principal of Western Heights High School told 1 NEWS they were unaware if the parents of the student victim had contacted police over the assault.
However, Rotorua Police said last night they did speak to Western Heights High School staff yesterday over a serious assault on a student, and an investigation is ongoing.
Rotorua Police said a student has been suspended from the school pending further investigation by the Ministry of Education.
The victim had yesterday off school but did not receive any injuries in the attack, police said.
"The police will be working with the school to determine whether police intervention is appropriate and to ensure the safety and needs of the victim are met," Rotorua Police said in a statement.
Senior Sergeant Denton Grimes said massive outrage to the incident from people online, with the original post receiving tens-of-thousands of views yesterday, was understandable and indicative of the community's zero-tolerance on violence.
"I note the social media comments from the community in response to the video that was released, strongly condemning the actions of those involved in the violence. This is encouraging that people do not accept violence in our communities," Sergeant Grimes said.
"Police acknowledge the resentment from our community towards the actions of the offender in this assault, and we would like to thank the school for their cooperation and assistance with the investigation so far."
Sergeant Grimes also said the student who committed the assault need to be supported "to enable them to change their behaviour to prevent a repeat of what has happened".
Western Heights High School deputy-principal indicated yesterday, the school appreciated the severity of the incident.
"I think the incident you're actually talking about, that's not bullying, I’d call that an assault," the deputy principal, who would not supply her name, said.
Western Heights High School also released a statement over the incident saying they were following the Ministry of Education disciplinary guidelines in response the attack:
"Western Heights High School staff and students are appalled by this serious assault. Our Board of Trustees have been notified of this incident and are following the Ministry of Education disciplinary guidelines. We have used school assemblies to send out strong messages about appropriate behaviour and we are proud of those students who intervened to prevent further harm to the victim. We share the concern about the level of violence being used by young people today, and would like reassure our school community that the safety of our students is our number one priority."
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