A 17-YEAR-OLD Anhui boy suffered a ruptured spleen in a severe beating in Longhua Subdistrict, Bao an District, a week ago.
Wang Yanbei, who makes a living selling roasted sweet potatoes on the street, is still being treated at Longhua Hospital.
A gang reportedly speaking in a Henan dialect had allegedly attacked Wang after a 1-year-old infant received a slight burn at Wang s stall on the afternoon of Nov. 23.
Four men stopped Wang at the entrance of Gongcun Village and gave him a severe beating.
The gang then took Wang to Longhua Hospital where they demanded 4,000 yuan (US$600) from Wang s uncle for the infant s injury.
However, doctors at Longhua Hospital said the infant had received only a very slight skin injury.
Wang underwent a 30-hour operation but his life was still in danger. Wang s uncle told the Daily Sunshine that his medical expenses already amounted to 14,000 yuan (US$2,100).
Wang had been supporting his widowed mother on his earnings of less than 100 yuan per day after they left their impoverished hometown in Yuzhai Township in Anhui Province, his uncle said.
Police have not yet found the men who attacked Wang.
A police officer at Longcheng Police Station said the only information they had was that one of the attackers was called Ah Niu and a camera at an ATM machine near Longhua Hospital might provide some clues.
We hope to get more information after Wang recovers, he said. (Tina Chen)
