KEY POINTS:
A 10-year-old boy is among a group of seven youths caught by police for a violent attack on a teenager that was filmed and posted on the YouTube website.
A 17-year-old boy is due to appear in court today in relation to the assault in front of a
crowd of 30 youths.
Police have now taken action against seven boys in relation to the attack, but say they still plan to speak to others who incited the violence.
The assault involved a 16-year-old boy being kicked in the head and body in a Hastings park while others watched - one filming on a video camera and others on cellphones.
Police said the attack was premeditated and intended to give the perpetrators "street cred" while humiliating the victim.
The 17-year-old has been charged with assault with intent to injure and will appear in the Hastings District Court.
Yesterday, two boys aged 14 and 16 appeared in the city's Youth Court and admitted charges of common assault in relation to the March 30 incident.
The Herald can now reveal the pair are brothers, after a suppression order forbidding publication of their relationship was lifted.
A lawyer for the 14-year-old said he committed the assault in retaliation for an earlier attack by the victim.
The brothers are among four boys who have been expelled from a local high school, which they and the victim attended.
The brothers' names are automatically suppressed because of their ages. The name of the school is also suppressed.
Judge Bridget Mackintosh continued strict bail conditions for the pair, including that they not contact the victim, either through electronic or other means.
Lawyers for the brothers said they did not deny the assault but disputed some of the facts.
"My client would say he was bullied by the victim at an earlier stage and this was the catalyst for the incident," said Don Kennedy, lawyer for the 14-year-old.
The judge ordered a family group conference to be held before the boys' next appearance on May 30 to resolve issues with the police summary of facts.
She would not allow the summary to be published until then, and continued suppression of the school's name at the victim's request.
Police prosecutor Sergeant Dave Greig said the victim had returned to the school and was receiving counselling, but did not want the school named.
Mr Kennedy objected to the suppression, saying it did not help his client, who might try to get back into the school after being "excluded".
Roger Philip, lawyer for the 16-year-old, had no position on the issue, but said: "The school has certainly taken a strong position against my client".
The judge also questioned why the school's name should be suppressed when the assault had not happened in school grounds or during school hours, and said the order would continue only until May 30 unless affidavits were filed.
The boys ran from the courthouse after the hearing and neither they nor a man introduced in court as the 14-year-old's father would comment.
But Mr Kennedy said the 14-year-old would argue that he had been attacked by the victim at school, and "though inappropriate", his older brother had only wanted to help him when they retaliated.
Police said most of those involved in the assault, which remained on YouTube for a week, had been identified.
In addition to the trio facing charges in court, four boys aged 10, 13, 14 and 15 have been referred to Youth Aid or ordered to participate in family group conferences, where allegations against them are formally explained.
The 15-year-old who filmed and posted the video has not been charged but is among those the school expelled.
The victim did not want to talk publicly about the attack.
The school principal also declined to comment and referred comments to the school's lawyer, who did not return calls.
