THE father of the Craigavon teenager seriously injured in an assault early on Sunday morning said he wouldn't like any other parent to go through what he and his wife have experienced this week.
Pat O’Hagan, speaking to the Portadown Times on Tuesday morning, also expressed relief that his 17-year-old son Martin had been released from the intensive care unit onto a ward at Craigavon Area Hospital.
He is now in a stable condition.
The
teenager, an A-Level student at Lismore Comprehensive School, was returning to his home at Hillcrest around 3am after a night out in Lurgan when he was attacked by a gang of males in the Meadowbrook estate.
Two local residents went to his aid after one of them heard his screams.
The man told UTV, "I was going to bed and I heard a scream. I came out to the door and seen a young fella lying. I went running over to see what was wrong and I saw the blood.
“I ran back and shouted to my wife to phone an ambulance and the neighbour came out. He heard me shouting to get an ambulance.
“He knows a bit of first aid and then a couple of other neighbours came out and we got tissues and tea towels and stuff and the main thing was stopping the blood."
Mr O’Hagan said he was extremely grateful to the two men who had gone to help his son so quickly. “We were told that if Martin had been found half an hour later he would have been dead,” he said.
The teenager, the second youngest of six children, spent Sunday night in intensive care with a fractured skull and a blood clot on his brain, and his family feared he might not pull through.
However, on Monday his condition improved and he was moved onto one of the wards.
Mr O’Hagan said the attack had been traumatic for the whole family, including his wife Teresa and Martin’s three brothers and two sisters.
“I wouldn’t wish it on my worst enemy,” he said. “To watch your wee boy lying there, with tubes coming out of him, and not knowing if he’s going to live or die, it’s unbelievable.”
He said he wanted everyone to see the photo of his injured son in hospital, so that they could see what the culprits had done to him. “I just hope they are caught and brought to justice,” he said.
Upper Bann MLA John O’Dowd said, “Our thoughts are with the young man’s family and we offer them what help or support we can give them at this difficult time. We pray that he will make a full and speedy recovery.
“It is essential that anyone with any information, no matter how slight, should pass that information on to the PSNI so that this incident can be fully and properly investigated.”
Councillor Kieran Corr said, “Hopefully those who did this will be brought before the courts, and that there will be no more such attacks in the area. We wish Martin and his family well and hope he makes a full recovery.”
Police are appealing for anyone who was in the Meadowbrook area at the time or anyone with information to contact detectives at Craigavon on 0845 600 8000. Anonymous information can also be passed to the Crimestoppers charity on 0800 555 111.
On Wednesday a spokesperson for Craigavon Area Hospital described the teenager’s condition as “stable”.
