00:01:04
ITN
Asian youth 'murdered by racists'
Asian youth 'murdered by racists'
An Asian teenager has been battered to death in a park in a suspected racist attack.West Yorkshire Police launched a murder inquiry after the body of the boy, aged 17 or 18, was found in a walled garden in Crow Nest Park, Dewsbury, West Yorkshire, on Sunday night.His death came amid reports of running battles between two gangs of youths in the park on Sunday afternoon.A source close to the victim's family said the bank holiday had been marred by violence between warring gangs.He said: "There was fighting between a white gang and a non-white gang."There is a belief that there may be a link between that and the murder of this young man."It's possible that what happened to this boy was a continuation of that violence. His family are absolutely distraught."A West Yorkshire Police spokesman said: "We are still looking at a possible motive so we cannot link the boy's death to anything else at this moment."But we are looking at what happened in the park during the day and whether there may be a link."We are looking at whether anything else happened in the park yesterday and if it did whether he was involved in it."The boy had been the victim of a "sustained and brutal" attack, police said.Detective Superintendent Chris Thompson said it was not yet known exactly how the boy died ahead of a post mortem and appealed for witnesses to come forward.He said: "As it was a sunny day it was very busy and there was a large number of young people in the park."Police believe they know the identity of the dead youth but are not yet in a position to release it, he added.Mr Thompson said the boy, who was wearing white tracksuit bottoms, black trainers, and a Bench top, was found in the garden by two members of the public who rang for an ambulance.Dewsbury MP Shahid Malik, who lives near the scene of the murder, appealed for calm following the killing, saying: "It is crucial that people put their faith in the police and not jump to any conclusions."
ITN | May 26, 2008
