Minors kill Karnataka boy trying to break up fight near school

Police superintendent Nikhil B said the 16-year-old student intervened when a quarrel escalated in Karnataka’s Shivamogga

A 16-year-old student was killed in Karnataka’s Shivamogga after a group of minors attacked him when he attempted to intervene in a fight outside a school, police said on Tuesday.

Two minors allegedly involved in the assault have been taken into custody. (Shutterstock)

He was leaving the school when he saw one of the boys he knew being beaten. When the teenager stepped forward to defuse the confrontation, the group assaulted him, striking him several times, including on his chest, investigators said. He collapsed and was taken to a hospital, where doctors declared him dead. The boy he tried to help was under medical care.

Police superintendent Nikhil B said the victim intervened when a quarrel escalated and was assaulted. “They knew each other. By the time he was taken to the hospital, he had died,” he said.

Two minors allegedly involved in the assault have been taken into custody. Police were identifying other members of the group, relying on the account of another minor who witnessed the violence.

Investigators said they were still determining what led to the confrontation, though initial findings suggested it may have stemmed from a minor disagreement. Police presence in the area has increased as a precaution.