Father says Chester High School tried to cover up son’s assault

Alphonzo Green said Chester High School tried to cover up the vicious attack on his 16-year-old son that was captured on a cell phone video and went viral.

“They were going to cover up the story when it happened and then it ended up going viral and they reported it all late to the police department,” Green said Tuesday.

Green’s son, whose name was withheld, was attacked by students in the high school’s library on May 7. The incident was reported to police by a student, not the school, Green said.

He was hit with a chair, fists and feet. He was hit and kicked in the head, face and back. The students then dipped into his pockets and stole his cell phone and money and then took his schoolbag, Green said.

Green also said his son had a gun pointed in his face only days earlier.

“When it happened, two days prior, there was a gun pulled in his face on school property,” Green said.

He said the school’s principal said an investigation was underway, but never heard back.

“Tuesday shows up, and next thing you know he gets jumped,” Green said.

Chester Upland School District Receiver Joseph Watkins andDeputy Police Commissioner Otis Blair did not return calls for comment.

He said his son was a victim of “Fight Week,” where Freshmen or newer students are targeted.He suffered a concussion and received about seven stitches in the back of his head.

“They laid him out,” Green said. “It was really ugly.”

The fight was one of many at the school that day.

Five students were arrested and are awaiting trial at Delaware County prison. The preliminary hearing, which was scheduled for Tuesday, was pushed back to May 25th, according to Green.

Green, who lives in Chester but works as a chef at a Philadelphia diner, said his son will be home-schooled for the rest of the year.

“The way that school is being run,” Green said, “I can’t even trust it.”