Young Port Lincoln boy coat-hangered by rope while riding his bike
A nine-year-old Port Lincoln boy suffered shocking rope burn injuries to his neck after he unwittingly rode his bike into a trap.
His mother says her son could have been killed and wants those responsible caught.
The injuries are a sickening sight – a red welt cuts a painful line across Stuart Heath's neck.
His mother Katherine Price said "he's still quite sore in the neck, can't really move it too far".
The young boy was riding his bike around Port Lincoln's Centenary Oval on Saturday afternoon when he was coat-hangered by the rope that was tied between a flagpole and fence.
Stuart did not see it coming and was thrown from his bike.
"He couldn't breath," Katherine told 7 News .
"It might not have been for a long time but it was something that really shook him."
Stuart was rushed to hospital and fortunately only sustained minor injuries.
His mother is adamant the rope was deliberately strung up by a group of children playing a cruel prank.
Katherine believes they lured her son into its path, saying her son "happened to see three kids around his age go running towards the box saying, oh 'ride faster, ride faster.'"
She says the kids fled after Stuart got hurt and she will be reporting the incident to police on Monday.
"I think the kids might've done it just for a bit of fun and didn't realise what harm it could've really had," Katherine said.
Anyone with information is encouraged to call Crime Stoppers 1800 333 000 or use the Crime Stoppers online reporting page.