Boy who suffered serious head injuries after ‘killer clown’ attack tells of the moment he was left with blood streaming down his face
A TEENAGE boy has told of the moment he heard a "sinister laugh" behind his back - before a clown threw a stick at him, piercing the side of his head.
Owen Russell, 17, was walking with friends through an alleyway when the group was confronted by the clown, with the prankster appearing to be trying to scare the group.
Owen told The Sun Online: "I heard a sinister laugh behind us and we realised it was a clown - we were all baffled because we haven't seen anyone dressing up like that in the area.
"We asked him what he was doing and he seemed intimidated because there were a lot of us.
"He started to walk off but then he threw a snapped branch from a tree and it hit me, and pierced the side of my head."
Owen, who is in sixth form, said he realised he was bleeding when he put his hand to his head, with his hand immediately covered in blood.
He said: "As soon as I realised there was a gash there was blood all over my hands.
"I took off my shirt to stop the bleeding."
The young man immediately called his dad, John Russell, who rushed him to hospital.
There, the young man had a CT scan before his wound was stitched up with six stitches.
Owen said: "My mistake was that I thought it was friendly."
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He said his friends had tried chasing after the 5ft 9in clown, who was wearing an orange wig and red nose, but the individual managed to jump over a fence and escape.
He said it was hard to see who was involved in the attack as it was extremely dark in the alleyway.
Dad John Russell told The Sun Online he was panicked as soon as he received his son's phonecall for help.
He said: "I raced out to him and he took the shirt off his head and there was blood all over his face.
"I took him to hospital where they took some scans."
He said the incident had been reported to police, who immediately brought out dogs and increased their presence in the Dinnington area.
He said: "I had seen a few things like this on Facebook, but they are all idiots really."
The family has now appealed for help after the attack that split the young boy's head open with the image of the young boy's injuries going viral.
A large white bandage is also wrapped around the boy's head, with the photograph showing him sitting downcast.
Posting the original photo, one woman wrote: "Been told to post this my his step mum poor lad been smacked over head or got summet chucked at him by some one dressed as a clown he needs stitches what idiot would do this and be silly share people let's find who did it".
In another post, family members appealed for information, saying: "My brother and his friends were out and about when an absolute tw*t has approached them dressed as a clown and threw a stick at one of his friends who is now at the hospital having stitches due to it splitting his head open.
"Getting beyond a joke now".
The post has now been shared more than 1000 times on social media.
The attack happened on a path in Dinnington, near Rotherham and was reported to South Yorkshire Police on Wednesday evening.
South Yorkshire police said that between September 21 and October 12, concerns about clowns had been raised by 61 members of the public - including 11 reports in Doncaster, 10 in Barnsley, 18 in Rotherham and 21 in Sheffield, with another on Facebook.
A police spokesperson told The Sun Online: "An incident in Dinnington, Rotherham, last night (11 October) is also under investigation after a 17-year-old boy was assaulted by a man dressed as a clown.
"It’s been reported the boy was approached by the man at around 9pm in Lordens Hill and a wooden log was thrown at him, causing a cut to the victim’s head. He received treatment at hospital and has since been discharged."
Police said they were working with the victim with enquiries ongoing.
Superintendent Colin McFarlane said: “There is a clear distinction to be drawn between young people who might be dressing up as we move into the Guy Fawkes and Halloween period and those that are dressing as clowns in order to commit public order offences or harassment.
"Clearly those that are crossing the threshold of criminality and especially if they are carrying weapons will be dealt with accordingly. I need people to understand that consequences of their actions and to take responsibility for them - South Yorkshire Police will not tolerate criminal behaviour."
He said that anyone who witnessed what happened can call South Yorkshire Police on 101, quoting incident number 1145 of 11 October 2016.
People took to social media, saying that the pranks had been taken "too far".
One wrote: "This is discusting, you can see he's only a babi. Hope he's alright (sic)."
Another wrote: "Surely can be found. Some lowlifes about who think it's funny dressed up as a clown, knew someone would get hurt wither it was the clown or someone else. Hope the kid is alright and the clown is found."
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