Elk Grove Unified 8th grader claims he was jumped by students on troublesome trail near school
There have been troubles on a trail near an Elk Grove Unified School District middle school, with a child claiming he has been jumped several times while walking home from school.
The trail is in the Vineyard area of Sacramento County, just north of Elk Grove, and is right behind Smedberg Middle School and Sheldon High School near Kingsbridge Drive.
"All of them dropped their bags and they started hitting me, kicking me, saying racial slurs about me," the boy said.
The middle schooler asked to stay anonymous but still wanted to speak out. He said it happened the last week of school. He cut class to avoid the kids that he said punched him in the school restroom, but he wound up running into them on the trail. He said five kids beat him up and stole his Oculus, a virtual reality headset.
He was left with a black eye, bloody lips and a cut-up mouth that have all since healed, but the pain is still present.
"I feel kind of scared going to school and walking home because I don't know if I am going to be attacked or get my stuff stolen," said the middle schooler.
The boy's mom, Natasha Lopez, was OK with being identified and said the same kids shot her son with Orbeez gel guns on the trail after 8th-grade orientation this week.
"It's not just physical. It's like something you have to deal with," Lopez said. "I have to go to school again, and I don't want to get hurt. It's not just getting hurt. It's embarrassment."
Lopez wants someone to protect the children who use the trail to get to and from school and is demanding that Elk Grove Unified or the Sacramento County Sheriff's Office step up.
"As a parent, it's really hurtful and frustrating because I can't do anything about it," Lopez said.
Other community members told CBS13 the trail has been a trouble spot for years with kids constantly fighting, smoking weed and causing chaos after class.
One neighbor offered to allow Lopez's son to stay on her porch as he waits to get picked up after school this year.
The Sacramento County Sheriff's Office said it was looking into the report. Elk Grove Unified told CBS13 that it is sharing the information with its EGUSD Safety and Security team.
Lopez said she met with the principal and vice principal at Smedberg Middle School, but she claims they said they do not deal with off-campus fights.
CBS13 is still working on getting more answers and clarity from officials.