QLD: Schoolies hurt in serious assault
By Crystal Ja26 Nov 2008 1:35 PM
GOLD COAST, Nov 26 AAP - Two schoolies have been taken to hospital after being set upon by a group of men on the Gold Coast.
The two 17-year-old boys were reportedly punched to the ground and kicked as they walked along Northcliffe Terrace, Surfers Paradise, at 1.15am (AEST) on Wednesday in an apparently unprovoked attack.
A wallet and mobile phone were allegedly stolen during the scuffle, police said.
Police detained eight men at the scene, and charged two of them.
Superintendent Jim Keogh said it was the first serious assault this year at schoolies, which entered its fifth day of celebrations on Wednesday.
"It's certainly a blot on the copybook of schoolies 2008," he said.
One of the boys has been released from hospital, while the other is having tests on facial injuries.
Haifa Rahmani, 18, from Varsity Lakes, appeared in Southport Magistrates Court on Wednesday on charges of assault occasioning bodily harm in company, robbery in company with violence and affray.
He was granted bail.
The second man charged has not appeared in court yet.
Meanwhile, rain has kept most schoolies away from the Surfers Paradise party precinct, with only 1,900 attending, down from 15,000 last year.
Arrests were also down, with 47 people charged, including 19 schoolies, compared to a total of 85 in 2007.
