Grade 11 Jamaica College student charged after viral campus assault video

The Jamaica College pupil seen in a widely circulated recording striking another boy on campus has been arrested and formally charged, as repercussions from the incident continue.

Acting Senior Superintendent Mark Harris, commanding officer for the St Andrew Central Police Division, confirmed to The STAR on Friday that the Grade 11 student faces a charge of assault occasioning bodily harm. Authorities have not released the teenager's name.

Sources told The STAR that the youth was charged on Thursday and later freed after being granted station bail.

Reports indicate the episode took place last Thursday at the all-boys school on Old Hope Road, but only drew broad public scrutiny after a 56-second clip began circulating on social media over the weekend.

In the footage, several boys are shown crowding around one student before one grabs his collar and lands multiple slaps to his face. Another pupil also appears to hit him with what looks like a belt, while voices can be heard questioning him about money.

A statement from the school earlier this week said the student who was attacked had admitted in writing to taking "certain items" belonging to a group of boys he had been socialising with. Those items reportedly included a jacket, a pair of glasses and cash.

The institution further stated that the boy first denied taking the property, then later confessed and agreed to return it. However, the school said he only partly complied and missed agreed deadlines for full restitution.

According to The STAR, the school's account holds that matters worsened when the "aggrieved student" confronted him over the outstanding items, leading to the physical clash captured in the video.

The school said all students involved were interviewed in the presence of their parents and signed statements were taken. They are now set to appear before the school's disciplinary committee for further action, even as police continue their own investigation into the matter.