Autistic teenager attacked for second time in a month - this time with knuckleduster
An autistic teenager has been savagely attacked for the second time in just over a month – this time with a knuckleduster.
In December Cornwall Live reported how autistic teenager Jacob Comertoglu was set upon on December 17 as he walked into Bodmin to look at the town’s Christmas lights.
Jacob, 19, who also has Asperger’s Syndrome, had the misfortune of stumbling upon a man arguing with his girlfriend, the man then taking offence to his presence launching a brutal and sustained assault on Jacobwhereby he hit and headbutted him. A nurse who treated Jacob was horrified that there were no defensive injuries when she examined him.
The chilling ordeal was filmed by a woman who lives overlooking the lane who shot the clip as part of her campaign to have CCTV cameras installed to combat anti-social behaviour. She had no idea of the nature of the altercation she witnessed.
Despite a ‘well-known’ local suspect being identified , nobody has yet been arrested and now, one month on, Jacob has been attacked again.
The latest episode of violence unfolded on Friday night.
Jacob’s mum Sally Kinsman said: “Jacob came home in the middle of the night and the morning after told me what had happened but said he didn’t want to go to the police or the hospital after last time.
“It happened in a flat in the main street. He walked past and heard ‘Jake, Jake, come up’. Innocently he went up and was lured into the bathroom where he was beaten by three people with a knuckleduster.
“He has a chunk missing above his eye and has threatened to commit suicide. I’ve had to take time off work to watch him. I’m keeping an eye on him 24/7. He’s been given anti-depressants but told it’s going to get worse before it gets better.”
Sally said that she thinks the people responsible for the latest attack were friends with who she believes to be the perpetrator for the Christmas attack.
She described how when she called the police she was asked to provide an exact address of where it happened, which she has since done, but despite this there have still been no arrests for either of the crimes.
Sally has since penned a letter to the police begging for arrests to be made.
In the letter she alleged that when she was chasing up the case with officers she was told "things don't happen as quickly as we like".
She wrote: “As of January 26 the police have got all the paperwork from the hospital, video footage, witness statement and evidence but nothing has been done (regarding the first attack).
“My son does not feel safe, he feels as though he has a target on his back because the police have done nothing. This situation has now escalated to a hate crime as my son was attacked again by friends of the suspect. How far does this have to go before actual action is taken against these thugs?”
“Will it be the suspect attacking another innocent person? Or perhaps my son taking his own life because the people that we, as parents, raise our children to believe will protect them from such atrocities do nothing. He is nothing more than a case file to be passed around for someone else to deal with or until we give up on finding justice.”
Finally, Sally said as a result of a lack of action, Jacob feels as if he’s the town’s punching bag.
Devon and Cornwall Police on Thursday (January 31) confirmed that both incidents remain live criminal enquiries but no arrests have been made.
How I got the story
This story is one of Cornwall Live's best read stories of 2019 with more than 60,000 hits.
I first heard about what happened to Jacob on a community Facebook page and then contacted his mother who after some initial reservation was willing to speak.
The initial story was well read with many slamming the conduct of those responsible for attacking Jacob on his way home from seeing the Christmas lights in his hometown. I also made contact with a woman who had unknowingly recorded the attack and who with the mum's permission, shared the video with us.
Then, a couple of weeks later Jacob's mum messaged me on Facebook to say that he had been attacked again.
The second story, telling of the second assault featuring a knuckleduster spread far and wide and Jacob's mum was happy to speak to me in the hope that it would force the police to take action and make an arrest.
Cornwall Live links
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