17-year-old on the autism spectrum mauled in Bacolod

A 17-year-old teenager on the autism spectrum sustained injuries after he was beaten in Barangay Bata, Bacolod City.

According to Adrian Prietos’ Tuesday report on “24 Oras,” two of the four suspects were minors.

CCTV footage showed that some of the suspects were holding the victim while the rest were kicking and hitting him with a pipe.

“Maraming pasa sa mukha. Sipa, sakal, suntok, mga mahigit 30 siguro. As in ang sakit-sakit,” the victim’s brother said.

(He has a lot of bruises on the face. They kicked and kicked him over 30 times and strangled him. It really hurt him.)

With the permission of the victim’s family, GMA Regional TV interviewed the victim.

He said the group was teasing him before the incident.

“Tinatawag nila akong baliw. Hinampas ng tubo sa likod. Marami sila, apat sila. Nang nakaraan, masakit ang ulo ko,” the victim said.

(They said I’m crazy. They hit my back. There were four. My head hurt recently.)

According to residents, the victim was usually bullied in their area due to his condition.

A resident said they thought the victim was hit by a car, adding that the teenager gets annoyed when they say bad things to him.

The suspects were identified after the victim’s family filed a complaint with the barangay and police.

GMA Regional TV reached out to the suspects for comment, but they have yet to release a statement.

“We tried our best na hindi na umabot sa korte. Nag-offer rin ang respondents na handa silang humarap pero ang complainant, decided na magsampa sa court,” Barangay Bata chairman Elvis Olivares said.

(We tried our best not to bring it to court. The respondents offer a settlement, but the complainant decided to take it to court.)

The victim’s family is prepared to file physical injury charges against the suspects.

“Kung pababayaan namin, how about sa ibang PWD? hindi lang ito para sa kapatid ko,” the victim’s brother said.

(If we let it slide, how about the other person with disabilities? This is not only for my brother.)

The victim’s family confirmed that the barangay provided a certificate to file an action, and the process of filing a complaint with the prosecutor's office has already begun.

According to a special education teacher, it is important to understand the situation of people on the autism spectrum.

“Hindi nila kayang lumaban kasi may kakulangan, kasi special sila. Mabilis silang magalit especially kapag tinawag silang baliw, naiinsulto sila,” said Jessica Agsam, special education teacher.

(They cannot fend for themselves because they have special needs. They easily get mad, especially when they are called crazy. They're offended.) —Mariel Celine Serquiña/LDF, GMA Integrated News