Police in Washington, DC, arrested a 17-year-old on Friday suspected to be one of around a dozen teens caught on surveillance footage beating a man to the ground.
Video of the disturbing attack near Dupont Circle shows a large group of young male and female teens punching and stomping on a man before fleeing the scene. One appears to spit on the man before running away.
Police are still trying to identify the whole group — who they say appear to be as young as 13 — but charged the arrested 17-year-old male with aggravated assault.
The incident took place on July 14, on Connecticut Ave. The arrest came two days after video of the incident was released by Metropolitan Police.
According to a police report, a man from Hampton, Virginia — who was with the victim seen in the video — heard one of the teens yell "That's him" while pointing at the victim, who is from Newport News, Virginia.
The Hampton man told police he tried to stop the attack, telling them, "That's not him; you have the wrong person!" but was unsuccessful. According to WJLA-TV, he was punched while attempting to intervene.
Both victims were transported to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, police said. The Newport News man was treated for injuries to the head and left eye socket, and the Hampton man, who was injured less severely, suffered a swollen left eye.
Police are seeking between 10 and 14 suspects, if not more, who appear to be ages 13 to 14, according to the police report.
Metropolitan Police Department spokesperson Dustin Sternbeck told BuzzFeed News the incident remains an active investigation. He added that the motive of the attack "is not known at this time, but we hope to swiftly identify the individuals responsible."
Sternbeck told the Washington Post the incident may have been a case of mistaken identity, adding that "we only have one side of the story."
In a news conference Thursday, DC Mayor Muriel Bowser reportedly said the brutal beating would not be treated like a "schoolyard prank."
"That's an assault. And it carries jail time," Bowser said. "And so we want those people to know, young people — we don't know how old they are — that this is not a game. They're real people on the other end of this attack."
A spokesperson for the hotel did not immediately respond to a request for comment from BuzzFeed News but told WJLA they believe the "events leading up to the attack outside the front door of the hotel began at a nearby bar."