Warning – This video may be disturbing for some viewers.
ROGERS, Ark. (KFSM) — A violent video circulating online of two Rogers High School students involved in a fight on a school bus caught parent's attention Monday (Dec. 16).
The fight landed one student, a freshman, in the hospital, and the other, a senior, behind bars.
The Rogers Polie Department says they have already investigated the incident that happened in November. Still, parents of the victim took to social media Monday, saying they feel more should have been done.
The fight occurred on November 7, and one student was arrested days later. The video showed the arms of the boy arrested flailing while punching the victim. Other students could be heard yelling at the boy to stop.
Parents of the student that was assaulted by said they knew about the fight as soon as their son got off the bus. They just recently came across a video of the fight circulating on social media. After seeing what happened, they said more should be done.
An original post from one of the boy's parents accused Rogers PD and the bus driver of not taking actions to protect their son. She later updated her post stating she was pleased with the way the police handled the case after learning of the other boy's arrest.
A statement was made on the Rogers Police Department's Facebook page addressing speculation online that the police didn't investigate the fight.
The Rogers Police Department has been made aware of a video circulating on social media depicting a fight between two students while they are on a school bus. We have read the comments and the outcry asking why we didn’t do anything about it.
This video is yet another example of why you shouldn’t believe everything you read or see on social media. This incident occurred in November and we have already investigated the incident.
We interviewed the suspect and the victim. We interviewed witnesses and we watched the bus video. The juvenile in the video was arrested and charged over a month ago. His first court date has already passed.
It is important to remember, and we have said this many many times, that the Rogers Police Department takes the safety of our students and youth extremely serious, that we will investigate and follow up on reported crimes, and that we will arrest the suspect when we have sufficient evidence.
I hope this helps answer some of your questions. Because the incident concerns juveniles we are not allowed to discuss much more, but we do want the public to know that we investigated this incident when it occurred and it is now in the hands of the juvenile system.
5NEWS spoke with Keith Foster with the Rogers Police Department about the online video.
"People are getting upset, and again understandable, I understand that. But what they aren't getting is the rest of the picture. We have done something about it, and we did. And because it involves juveniles, we can't go into all of that. But it is important that people know when something like that happens, we're going to investigate it. It's important that they remember we take the safety and security of our children and students extraordinary serious," Foster said.
The Rogers senior has been charged with battery. His first court date has already passed.
