Crime & Safety

Police: Mauldin High Student Set Classmate's Hair on Fire

Student faces assault and battery charges stemming from incident.

A Mauldin High School student is facing charges after he allegedly set a female classmate's hair on fire during class, according to a Mauldin Police Department incident report.

According to the report, the 15-year-old victim and assistant principal Brad Griffin stated that a 16-year-old male suspect pulled out a lighter during a class on Jan. 11 and said: "Me set your synthetic [hair] on fire!" When the victim replied it was her real hair, the suspect allegedly lit her hair on fire anyway.

The student reportedly ran out of class to a restroom and, along with a fellow classmate, attempted to douse her hair to stop the burning. The victim also alleged in the report that the suspect followed her into the restroom, laughed at her, and then walked back out.

No injuries were reported from the alleged incident, but the victim reported that some of her hair came out in the restroom sink, the report said.

The suspect claimed innocence to police and insisted that the girl had lit her own hair on fire. However, the "victim and several of her classmates did provide written statements in reference to this incident," the report stated.

The suspect, whose name was not released because of his age, was arrested and booked into the county juvenile detention center and was charged with third-degree assault and battery, disturbing schools, and giving false information to a police officer, the report said.

In addition, the student was given a 10-day school suspension, according to Greenville County Schools' spokesperson Susan Clarke.


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