PALM COAST, Fla. – A disturbing video shows a physically imposing Florida high school student violently throw a female staff member to the ground and then pummel her unconscious inside a school this week after she confiscated his Nintendo Switch video game on two occasions. (Note: A claim made by the student that she now denies. Read more.)
The enraged 17-year-old male — described as 6-foot-6-inches tall and weighing 270-pounds — can be seen sprinting toward the woman, who turns and notices her attacker a moment before she is unmercifully beaten, the New York Post reported.
The crime occurred inside Matanzas High School in Palm Coast. During the brutal battering the student repeatedly stomped on the unconscious teacher before punching her 15 times.
Other staff members and a man who appeared to a Marine who witnessed the ambush blitz came to the woman’s aid by pulling the imposing teen off the teacher, who was then rushed to a local hospital. She is expected to survive and eventually recover from her unspecified injuries.
The Flagler County Sheriff’s Office responded to the scene and arrested the attacker.
“The student stated that he was upset with the victim because she took his Nintendo Switch away during class,” the sheriff’s office said in a statement.
Responding deputies found the teacher bloody and unconscious, according to an arrest report.
The rampaging student began spitting in the teacher’s direction, telling deputies that he was “going to kill her” when he returned to school, The Post reported.
“The actions of this student are absolutely horrendous and completely uncalled for,” said Volusia County Sheriff Rick Staly in a statement. “We hope the victim will recover, both mentally and physically, from this incident.”
The teen resides in a group home. He was turned over to the Department of Juvenile Justice and has been charged with felony battery.
When the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office released video footage of the beating, the Volusia County School officials issued a statement, that said, “The safety and security of our students and staff is of utmost importance to us and we will continue to cooperate fully with the local authorities as part of this investigation.”
