Teenaged gang attacked people of Indian appearance, court hears

A teenaged boy, accused of attacking an Indian student in Australia last month, was part of a gang that targeted people of Indian appearance, a children's court heard Melbourne on Thursday.

The boy, 17, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was arrested on New Year's Eve for the attack on Manriajwinder Singh in Melbourne December 29.

Singh, who is studying for a Bachelor of Commerce degree at a Melbourne university, is in an induced coma in the Alfred Hospital in the city after sustaining serious head injuries.

Doctors are still waiting to assess the extent of his injuries following the attack.

The children's court Thursday heard that Singh, whose injuries were initially considered life threatening, is now in a serious but stable condition, The Age reported.

One of Singh's friends was also attacked by the gang of eight boys, while another friend managed to escape.

Three teenagers have been arrested in connection with the attack and five others are wanted for questioning.

The oldest of the arrested boys, who appeared in court on Thursday, was refused bail.

The court heard that the boy, his twin brother and their younger brother were named by another person who was arrested for the attack.

A detective told the court that the boy was part of a gang known as KYR, that particularly targeted people of Indian appearance.

Though the detective said she did not know what KYR stood for, reports of other gang offences last year said KYR stood for Kill Your Rivals, The Age report said.

Singh was with two friends when he was assaulted by the gang at Birrarung Marr park in Melbourne.

He was punched, kicked and thrown to the ground by the attackers. He was also allegedly beaten with a stick after he fell unconscious.

The detective told the court Thursday that Singh was kicked on the head from an elevated position and was beaten while he lay on the ground unconscious.

His friend was also punched in the face as he lay on the ground and suffered a scratched face, the detective said.

According to CCTV footage released by police, Manriajwinder Singh and one of his friends were standing near a footpath in the park when they were approached by eight young boys of African appearance and one fair-skinned woman and set upon.