Snapchat video captured skate park assault in Oak Harbor

Five teenagers allegedly beat up one of their peers in an incident that spread across social media.

Five Oak Harbor teenagers allegedly beat up one of their peers at the Oak Harbor skate park in an incident that spread quickly across social media platforms last fall, according to court documents.

Prosecutors charged one of the perpetrators with assault in the fourth degree in Island County Juvenile Court Jan. 12.

The victim, another teenager, told police that his assailants had been trying to take his scooter from him, the police report states. Witnesses, including the victim’s brother, provided the names of the five perpetrators, who ran away shortly before the victim’s brother called the police.

WhidbeyHealth Medical Center documents provided to the police showed that the victim was diagnosed with a facial mass and right leg pain following the assault.

In the days following the incident, police obtained a Snapchat video showing what appears to be five subjects participating in the assault of one victim, the police report states.

An Oak Harbor Boys and Girls club employee reported to the police that one club member, an Oak Harbor High School student, showed some of his peers a video clip of the incident. The report states that the student showing the video said, “This is what happens when you mess with my friends.”

One of the teenagers to whom the club member showed the video told police the club member said the incident was “funny,” the report states. According to the report, she then informed the club member that the video had been distributed widely over Facebook, and the club member promptly deleted the video from his phone.