Young man’s last thing he remembers was having great time at a music festival. Next he knows is being hospitalized with severe injuries due to a bizarre reason
Late last month, a young man woke up in hospital with severe injuries. The last thing he remembered was having great time with friends and his girlfriend at a local country music festival. Then he discovered the bizarre reason what had happened in between.
According to NY Post, the 18-year-old R. Watts was accused by another concert attendee that he spilled a drink on them at a “Rock the South” music festival in Alabama late July. Watts explained to the group of people that he didn’t have a drink on him and the two reportedly shook hands. The hostility between them was cleared and Watts headed to the restroom area with his friends.
Moments later, he was brutally attacked from behind without having a chance to defend himself. The next thing he knows is being hospitalized with severe injuries.
“Some dude said I was spilling beer on him or something along those things, and then I talked to him because I didn’t have a drink on me at the time, like I didn’t have anything, I talked to him and shook his hand because I thought everything was okay because I explained to him it wasn’t me,” Watts recalled to WBMA.
“Then a few minutes later, I was walking back and got hit in the back of the head, then I hit the ground and tried to cover my face, then I got knocked out and that was really all I remember,” Watts added.
Watts’ girlfriend, Katie, has described a harrowing incident and confirmed that the attack took place in front of her eyes. She was traumatized of what happened and she confirmed that attackers even robbed her defenseless boyfriend.
“It was horrible, I’m traumatized, I felt so helpless because I couldn’t get in there and get to him and I had to sit there and watch him get beat up while he’s unconscious, it’s horrible,” she said.
A bystander who attempted to intervene shared that he couldn’t stand by and watch the violence, but the situation wasn’t brought under control until festival security intervened. Watts’ mother has publicly appealed for help in finding those responsible.
Following the attack, Watts was taken to a local hospital, showing significant injuries. An image shared by a family member showed the teen with swollen eyes and a reddened face, wearing a neck brace. Watts has since been released and is recovering at home.
Several days after the incident, police announced the arrest of the assailants, thanks to evidence found in social media videos. Three men, two aged 20 and one aged 21, were apprehended and are facing second-degree assault charges, a felony. Cullman Police Chief David Nassetta confirmed that tips from social media played a “big, big factor” in identifying the suspects. The festival also called the perpetrators “gutless cowards,” but thanked everyone for sharing information and photos.
“The victim did not know them, and the witnesses we had didn’t know them, so it was really an important part of the puzzle for people to be able to look at the video and say, ‘Yeah, I know those guys,’” said Cullman Police Chief David Nassetta.
Nassetta declined to elaborate on the motive for the assault, dismissing it as “absolutely meaningless.”
“Our investigation showed that it was a pretty frivolous, meaningless thing,” he said.
The attackers were released on bond the day after they were arrested and could face up to 10 years in prison if convicted.
The video of the incident can be seen here. Watch it on your own risk.
