Friends fearful after Edmonton teen maimed in machete attack
Friends of a Mill Woods boy maimed in a brutal attack say the violent beating has left them nervous and fearful.
Braydon Heather remains in hospital after being badly beaten in Beaumont last week.
The 14 year old was discovered at about 1:35 a.m. on June 21. He had head injuries, multiple wounds to his hands, arms and upper body and a 'joker-like' gash across his face.
RCMP believe a machete was used in the attack.
Heather's friends spoke to CBC News on condition of anonymity, fearful they could face consequences for speaking out.
"I know (Braydon) very well, me and him hang out all the time at the skate park and other places," one friend said. "It's scary for everyone, because we don't want the same thing to happen to us."
Another teenager charged
Heather is well known at the Mill Woods skate park. A 14 year old who has been Heather's friend for three years said he's scared to think that somebody in his age group could be "capable of doing something terrible like that."
A 15 year old boy has been charged with attempted murder, aggravated assault and possession of a weapon dangerous to the public.
The fact that a teenager is accused is even more unnerving for Heather's friends, already worried about his chances of recovery and sickened by the photos of him hooked up to tubes in hospital.
Heather's injuries include a deep cut to his mouth. His left thumb had to be reattached. It took hundreds of stitches to sew up wounds on his hands and arms.
The brutal attack has frightened and sickened those who know him.
"It's scary to me because it's someone that I know, and that I've hung out with before," another friend of Heather said. "To think that a 15 year old would do that to a 14 year old. Even for a 15 year old to be capable of doing that to someone is just crazy."
'The best kid on the planet'
It's unclear what the lasting effects on Heather will be. The beating caused his brain to swell and a family friend told CBC News the boy suffered five strokes and developed an infection.
"He was the best kid on the planet," said one friend, who can't explain how Heather ended up in Beaumont on the night he was attacked.
"He could make everyone laugh," he said.
Heather's skate park friends know him as a "good kid" who excelled at sports and played for club teams in hockey and baseball.
None who talked to CBC have any idea who Heather was with the night he was found or what led up to the attack.
RCMP say their investigation is ongoing.
The latest information on Heather's condition is that he is stable and remains sedated in hospital.
