Teen says Alabama river kayak trip ended in beating, rape threats

Published 2:59 pm Wednesday, June 5, 2019

A teenager says a kayaking trip down an Alabama river ended with him and his friends being beaten and threatened with sexual assault.

News outlets quote 18-year-old Collins Nelson of Huntsville as saying he and other friends were on the Flint River in northern Alabama on Sunday when another kayaker began yelling and calling him a “sissy boy.”

Nelson says the taunting included a threat to sexually assault a female who was with his group. He says the man and other adults attacked his group a little farther downstream.

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Nelson has a broken nose and fractured eye socket, among other injuries.

Will League is an attorney representing Nelson. He says the teens will press charges.

Huntsville Police spokesman Michael Johnson says an investigation is complete and victims can pursue charges.