Victorian teen’s powerful letter to students after alleged gang-rape
A TEENAGER who was allegedly bullied and gang-raped penned a brave letter to her classmates before taking her life.
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A VICTORIAN schoolgirl who took her own life after she was allegedly gang-raped in a sick attack set up by bullies wrote about her horrific ordeal in a brave letter to her classmates.
Cassidy Trevan was 15 when she took her own life following a severe bullying campaign by a group of girls at her school in which she was led to a house and raped by two teenage boys, her mum claims.
Now a letter which Cassidy penned to her fellow pupils warning them about what happened and urging them to fight to stop bullies has emerged.
The letter, discovered on her laptop by mum Linda, says: “My name is Cassidy Trevan, and I was raped. If anyone every tries this on you trust me it’s worth fighting! Fight! If you don’t you’ll regret it for the rest of your life like I do. You can do it. Be careful. Be warned. Be safe.”
Cassidy was just 13 when schoolyard bullies allegedly organised for her to be raped, and her torment is said to have continued until she killed herself two years later.
Her heartbroken mum, from Melbourne, who decided to share the draft, wrote on Facebook today: “This process of getting Cassidy’s story out there has both destroyed me and given me purpose at the same time. “I felt so ‘stuck’, I had to get it out there for her, like she wanted but couldn’t manage to do herself.”
Ms Trevan told Nine.com.au: “The bullying started out with just insults and stuff and she got slapped across the face once or twice.”
But, she said the tormentors escalated their campaign against her daughter, attacking her on social media, following her around shops and vandalising the family’s home.
Ms Trevan said Cassidy missed a term of school because of the bullying, but when she returned the group apologised and invited her to join them at a festival.
But, instead of taking her to a party it is claimed she was lured to an abandoned house where they had organised for her to be raped.
Her mum said: “They were older boys that Cass didn’t know. Two girls who sat and waited. Two boys who shared her and timed each other. One boy stood guarding the front door.”
The attack was reported to police but Cassidy was too scared to make an official statement, her mum said. She suffered flashbacks, panic attacks and post traumatic stress disorder.
Ms Trevan wrote on Facebook: “I spent almost two years desperately doing everything I could to try to keep her alive, she never got over it. Even though I moved her away, she could never go to school again, she couldn’t be around people anymore, a quick trip to the shops often ended in tears or panic attacks.”
Cassidy also wrote in her letter: “My aim is to warn other people ... about what happened because I’m worried if they could do it to me they do it to other kids like me, or at least try to. You actually have the power to stop this from happening.”
In a statement Victoria’s Department of Education and Training, provided to Channel 9 which initially published Cassidy’s letter, a spokesman said: “The death of any young person is an absolute tragedy and our sympathies are with Cassidy’s family.
“Schools have a range of ways to help students who may be experiencing bullying or mental health issues, including by providing qualified counsellors.
“School staff work hard to identify and support students who need support and we would encourage any students who need help to talk to staff at their school.”
Detectives from Victoria Police’s Sexual Offence and Child Abuse Investigation Team met with Cassidy and her mum more than 20 times but were forced to drop the case because of a lack of evidence, although counselling and victim support were offered.
Ms Trevan spoke out through social media about her daughter’s suicide in December 2015 in a bid to show bullies the consequences of their actions.
In a Facebook post she wrote: “I helplessly watched my precious child wither away before my eyes, mentally & physically, until she rarely got out of bed, until she could no longer take the pain and torment you caused her.
“I know who you are, you know who you are, and the police know who you are. I hope the knowledge of what you did haunts you for the rest of your lives, and one day, if you are lucky enough to have children of your own … remember what you did to my precious only baby, and imagine how you’d feel if someone did that to your baby.
“Cassy was my world, she still is and she always will be. But now I have nothing, and I’m still trying to find a reason to go on without her.”
If you or someone you know needs help, contact Lifeline on 13 11 14 or visit the website at lifeline.org.au. You can also contact Reach Out on 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732) or visit the website at au.reachout.com. If it’s an emergency, call 000.
This story originally appeared in The Sun and has been republished here with permission.
Originally published as Victorian teen’s powerful letter to students after alleged gang-rape
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