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New Video Shows Teen With Special Needs Seen in Attack Video Tried to Stop an Officer

Authorities confirmed video being shared by community activists does show the 15-year-old victim flagging down a police detail

New video appears to show a teen girl with special needs flagging down a police officer as the group of people who attacked her pulled her away - and police are investigating why the girl wasn't helped. 

Authorities confirmed video being shared by community activists does show the 15-year-old victim flagging down a police detail as the girls who attacked her in now-viral video try to pull her away. 

"She told the officer they were trying to kidnap her and you see the girls pulling her back," said the teen's aunt Raquel Harris. "Why didn't the officer help?"

Chicago police said the officer in the video was off-duty.

“We are still trying to determine who she spoke to and what was said but there is no call for service or citizen stop notation that we can find," a CPD spokesman said. 

It's unclear if the footage was taken before or after the beating that was captured on video and shared to social media. 

Prosecutors said several people beat the 15-year-old girl with special needs in the 5300 block of South Hermitage on July 22. The girl was able to escape the attack by running away from the group. 

Four teen girls were arrested in connection with the "upsetting assault," police said. 

A 15-year-old suspect, now facing charges of felony aggravated battery and misdemeanor battery, appeared in court with her mother Friday. 

The teen turned herself in to police this week after receiving multiple threats when video of the beating went viral on social media, prosecutors said. She was ordered released on electric monitoring, where she will only be allowed to go to school, church and doctors appointments. The judge also ordered that no friends be allowed to visit her at home and a restraining order was issued, preventing her from contacting the victim or speaking with other suspects involved in the attack. 

Another 15-year-old, along with a 13-year-old and 14-year-old were also charged in the case. 

Police said they are working to identify others seen in the footage and the person who filmed the attack. They added additional charges are also possible as the investigation remains ongoing. 

"Our victim knew her attackers and the video gave me the sense that she felt she was among friends," Chicago Police Supt. Eddie Johnson said during a news conference Thursday afternoon. "It broke my heart to see this group of people turn on her and escalate into what we saw, which was a physical assault."

The video that went viral on social media this week was shared on Twitter and seen more than 120,000 times in less than 24 hours, quickly sparked a criminal investigation by CPD, Chicago Police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi tweeted Tuesday evening.

“This is beyond disturbing to watch and this young girl deserves far better,” Guglielmi wrote.

Community activist Stringer Harris, who has been working with the family in wake of the incident, said the girl's friends attacked her, allegedly because she did not want to participate in sexual acts and to keep her from reporting it to police. 

"It's a shame, and she's upset," Harris said. "She's still trying to figure this out." 

Police added the group was teaching the teen how to make gang signs before the attack, but authorities do not believe it was a gang initiation. 

"There was some things going on that these young ladies wanted to her do that she… we’ll leave it at that for now," Johnson said Thursday. 

Police confirmed the Special Victims Unit is investigating a possible sexual assault in connection with the case. They also said the Department of Children and Family Services has been contacted and the victim remains in protective custody as DCFS investigates allegations of neglect in her home.  

"The victim was interviewed and she did mention a couple of things aside from what was on the video," Chicago Police Officer Jose Jara said Wednesday, declining to comment further on what might have happened. 

Police also declined to comment on the matter Thursday saying they were "not prepared to talk about that at this time." 

"There simply cannot be room for this type of divisive and hateful behavior," Johnson said. 

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