Barking family offer �1000 reward to catch boy’s attackers
THE FAMILY of a 15-year-old boy who was attacked by a gang of hooded thugs have put up a �1,000 reward in an attempt to catch them.
Robert and Lisa Bedwell, from Barking, are appealing for help in finding the people responsible for attacking their son, Bobby, now 16, on September 24.
Robert, 38, said: “I want someone caught for what they did to my son and to get what they deserve.
“He really took a beating and it is something that is going to affect his whole life.”
Bobby was walking home with five friends near Leigh Drive, Harold Hill, when he was set upon by the gang brandishing baseball bats and a lump of wood.
The rest of the group managed to escape without serious injuries, but Bobby was knocked out and had to be taken to Queen’s Hospital in Romford, with serious head injuries.
Doctors spent three days working to repair his broken jaw and cheekbone, a two-inch gash to the back of his head and his smashed teeth.
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The attack has resulted in Bobby losing the peripheral vision in his left eye and fragments of jawbone are embedded in his gums.
Robert said: “It has been absolutely heartbreaking.
“Every time I look at my son and you look into his eyes you can just see that he is hurting and it is outrageous that he was just walking along the road minding his own business and somebody can do something so terrible to him.”
In November, the family released shocking pictures showing the injuries inflicted on Bobby in the attack – in which �5 and a mobile phone were stolen – but no one has yet come forward.
Since then Bobby has been given false teeth which he can use until he is allowed to have implants when he is 18.
But the implants will depend on the amount of bone fragments he has left in his gums.
Robert said: “Bobby is slowly coming to terms with what happened but it has affected his whole life.
“He used to love playing football and was so outgoing and bubbly, but now he has to be careful because he could hurt his teeth and he is just a different person.”
He added: “I know there are people out there who know who did this. I just want them to come forward because how would they feel if it was their son or daughter that this had happened to?”
Anyone with information should contact Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 or Romford Police Station on 0300 123 1212.
