Town in Turmoil: A Mother's Cry for Action

A mum has spoken out after her son was assaulted over the weekend amid fears anti-social behaviour in Carrickfergus is 'spiralling out of control'.

Crisis Unfolds
The mum, who wished to remain anonymous, said incidents of ASB and violence are 'at crisis point', with her 12-year-old son the latest victim. The youngster was in Marine Gardens on Sunday evening, April 13, when he was attacked by a group of young people, who pushed him to the ground before 'stamping and jumping on his head'. The incident was reported to police by witnesses at the scene, and the incident is being investigated.

Community Outrage
Speaking in the wake of the incident, the mum said: 'This wasn’t just kids fighting, this was an attempt to seriously injure my son. He could have been killed. Read more: Justice Minister confirms number of arrests made after Belfast riots Read more: Man charged with sex assault over GAA county side Florida trip' 'My son was taken to the Royal Victoria Hospital where he underwent several tests to check for brain and head injuries. He also had to have a spinal x-ray as doctors became concerned about a possible fracture to his neck. Thankfully the injuries appear to be soft tissue damage. He’s now at home recovering but is still under observation.'

Call for Action
She appealed to parents of the children involved in such incidents: 'Parents need to act, they need to know where their kids are and what they are up to. It's completely out of control. It's only a matter of time before someone is killed.' Police said they received a report on Monday afternoon relating to the assault on Sunday evening, which took place at around 6.30pm.