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Teens Rob 8-Year-Old, Post Video Of Beating On Social Media

STOCKTON (CBS13) — A disturbing video posted to social media has a Stockton family upset and looking for answers.

According to investigators, a group of teens robbed and then filmed themselves beating their 8-year-old victim.

William Jones of Stockton can't bear to watch the violent video that shows his 8-year-old son being attacked.

"The video, they are showing him, kicking him, they cussing him out, they are slapping my son, and the person in the video is saying 'Your dad can't do anything about it,'" he said.

Jones recently moved back to Stockton after his son's mother died of cancer. The 8-year-old started hanging out at the neighborhood car wash and became friends with other kids who lived nearby.

"They showed me respect, and I told them you guys go to school, and you do this, and I can take you guys fishing, and we can go bike riding and use my son's skateboards, and we play catch right here in the yard with them," said Jones.

According to dad, the 8-year-old was invited to play three blocks from the house but returned shortly after in tears. He said a group of teens jumped him – stealing his bike and then forcing him into a home where he was beaten. His attackers shot the whole thing and posted it to social media.

"Just what we saw in that video shows the suspects beating up our victim for no apparent reason and they want to put it on social media for everyone to see; these people should be held accountable for their actions, and that is what our investigators are doing right now," said Stockton Police spokesman Joe Silva.

The videos have been taken down from social media. Investigators say it's important for every parent to be aware of the type of friends their children make, so something like this doesn't happen to them.

"It's the job of the parent to get to know who those new friends are and ask some good questions like where do you live, who are your parents and parents should actually meet each other and exchange numbers so that everybody knows who everyone is," said Silva.

The 8-year-old is said to be OK. His father took him back to the bay to live with relatives. Police are still investigating.

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