Teen boy ‘in hospital with broken back’ after incident

A Gloriavale teenager is in Christchurch Hospital after reportedly being left with a broken back following an incident at the community’s youth group. Police confirmed they were investigating what happened at the Haupiri community last Saturday afternoon. The boy was seriously injured during a youth group activity of picking rocks on the Gloriavale farm, according to a source in the community. The source alleged a 21-year-old man jumped on a 17-year-old boy’s back, bending it and fracturing his vertebrae. The teenager was taken to Greymouth Hospital before being transferred to Christchurch. Gloriavale was contacted by email and responded that the family did not want to make any comment. Oranga Tamariki confirmed it was aware of an incident between a 21-year-old male and a 17-year-old male in the Gloriavale community.