Police in Rowlett, Texas say they have issued an arrest warrant for a 13-year-old girl filmed attacking another teenager and injuring a toddler, but that she and her guardian have gone into hiding.
(Update: Rowlett police announced after this article was published that the family of the suspect is now cooprating with investigators. The family is “making arrangements to deliver the suspect, who is out of town,” according to the department.)
The girl faces a felony charge for endangering a child for the June 19 attack, which occurred at Herfurth elementary school in Rowlett, a Dallas suburb.
Video of the incident — which has gone viral because of its brutality — shows the attacker and another girl harassing the 14-year-old victim, who was holding her niece on her lap and sitting next to a friend.
The attacker is heard telling the victim to “get up” and to “keep your mouth closed” before springing to action. The attacker is seen grabbing the victim by the hair, causing the toddler to fall to the ground. The attacker is then seen punching and kicking the victim as the young girl is heard crying in the background. (RELATED: Shocking Video Emerges Of Girl Being Attacked While Holding A Toddler)
Rowlett police have said the girls knew each other from school but only in passing. They say that the attack was unprovoked.
Rowlett police department Lt. David Nabors told The Daily Caller the toddler suffered lacerations and abrasions. She did not suffer a concussion, as some had reported, he said.
The injuries to the child make the attack a third-degree felony under Texas law, Nabors said Friday.
Saturday afternoon police posted an update saying investigators had identified the attacker — whose name will not be released because she’s a minor — and issued an arrest warrant but she and a guardian have gone into hiding.
An update on the assault involving the toddler – the suspect has been identified and a warrant has been issued for her arrest. Because she is 13 years old, the law prohibits us from releasing her identity. The suspect and her guardian are aware of the warrant and have chosen to go into hiding. We are continuing the investigation and are actively attempting to locate the suspect. If you have information that would help locate her, please call the Rowlett Police Department at 972-412-6201. Please understand that the procedures we must follow in real life investigations take time. Be assured that we will locate the suspect.
Many have raised questions over whether the attack was racially motivated. The attackers are black while the victims appear to be white. But Rowlett police detective Cruz Hernandez denied that race played a part in the attack. He said the victim is bi-racial.
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