Two female Suffolk University students were accosted and assaulted by a group of teenage and pre-teen kids near Boston Common on Wednesday night, the school announced.
Boston police responded to the scene near the Earl of Sandwich restaurant on Tremont Street, the school said, where they discovered one of the Suffolk students had been punched by one of the five kids, who are between 11 and 14 years old.
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According to police, the same group is believed to be responsible for a series of unprovoked attacks and property damage around the Common, as well as Downtown Crossing and Macy's over the last week. Boston police are seeking criminal complaints against them.
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The police report from the incident stated that the group of kids were harassing an unknown woman and her daughter near the restaurant, at which point the Suffolk students told the kids to leave the woman alone as they walked past her.
One of the suspects, a girl, proceeded to punch one of the Suffolk students, knocking off her glasses before punching her again and then stepping on the glasses, according to the report.
A video of the assault was recorded, police said, at which point officers were able to identify the female suspect as the "main instigator" who was believed to have been involved in similar incidents recently.
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Due to their ages, formal charges have not been filed against any of the kids. The girl described as the main instigator received a summons for one count of delinquent to wit aggravated assault and battery and one count of delinquent to wit malicious destruction of property.
Both Suffolk students declined medical attention. Police say the two students are just the latest victims to be terrorized and assaulted by a group of kids in Boston.
"It's definitely really sad that someone who is 11 is attacking other people," said Suffolk student Ashley King.
"It's kind of scary that we have incidents happening so close to the restaurant," said Earl of Sandwich manager Christopher Tinney.
The Earl of Sandwich had just closed Wednesday around 6:30 p.m. when the Suffolk students said they were assaulted by the group of five young people.
"They are so young, and it's just awful," one woman said.
Police believe the same group is behind a violent assault on a woman in Downtown Crossing, a rock throwing incident at a Roxbury McDonald's, and broken windows at Silvertone.
Server John Castro says the group came into the bar last month, hurling racial slurs before they started causing damage.
"A lot of our guests ran right out after the situation," Castro said. "And once we got them outside, they didn’t stop there."
The crimes are frustrating police, who under the law cannot charge anyone under the age of 12.
Boston Mayor Michelle Wu says they are working on other targeted interventions. She says this kind of behavior, this young, is a cry for help.
"These are children who need support and services and they're connected to adults who also need to have some accountability," Wu said.
There was a slight increase in patrols Friday evening. Suffolk University also sent out a campus wide email about the attack, telling students to be on alert.
