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Case against Knockout King suspects falls apart

St. Louis Public Radio
Published Jan. 12, 2012 at 2:15 p.m. CST
(via Flickr/steakpinball)

A St. Louis man badly injured in a so-called "Knockout King" attack says he is angry and disgusted that the young people accused of the crime apparently got away with it.

St. Louis Circuit Court officials confirmed Thursday that second-degree assault charges have been dropped against seven juveniles because the lone witness - a 12-year-old girl - failed to show up for a hearing and stopped cooperating with prosecutors.

The six boys and one girl were accused of attacking 52-year-old Matthew Quain on Oct. 21.

In the Knockout King, a group of young people pick out a victim at random and attack. Neither robbery nor revenge is the motive.

Often, the attacks are captured on cell phone video and posted on websites.

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