Auckland police have charged a teenager after a 12-year-old girl was allegedly brutally beaten outside a McDonald’s in Auckland.
The young girl was left covered in blood after the vicious assault on Saturday at Glenfield McDonald’s.
“Police can now advise a 14-year-old female has been charged in relation to an incident in Glenfield on Saturday,” a police spokesperson said.
She is due to appear in the North Shore District Court today charged with injures with intent to injure.
“We again acknowledge how upsetting this incident was for the victim and the community, however as this matter is now before the Court, Police are limited in further comment,” they said.
Prime Minister Chris Hipkins has described the attack as horrific and utterly unacceptable.
Speaking to AM, Hipkins said the photos of the girl in blood-soaked pants and nursing a gash on her head after the beating would leave any parent heartbroken.
“I can say, as a parent, that every parent would be heartbroken by that photo,” he said.
On Breakfast, Hipkins insisted that New Zealand is a safe country.
“I think New Zealand is a safe country, but I think any incident like what we’ve seen here is horrific and unacceptable and always has been and always will be,” he said.
“No parents or victims should have to go through an experience like that.”
The young girl was enjoying a meal with her classmates at Glenfield McDonald’s and laughing together when two girls at another table “mistakenly” believed they were being laughed at.
“One of the girls proceeded to approach the table, demanding an apology from my sister, assuming they had been mocking her, despite their genuine intentions of having fun,” the victim’s sister Rein Crystal told the Herald.
Crystal says her sister would never want to upset anyone and is not the type to engage in fights or “rebellious behaviour”.
Two died in a crash in Greta Valley, and one in Albury.