Deputies: 14-Year-Old Locust Grove Boy Badly Beaten By 17-Year-Old

A Mayes County teenager is recovering in the hospital Wednesday night after nearly being beaten to death.

The sheriff's office says the teen was beaten up by an older boy after school Tuesday.

It's about as country as country can get; a gravel road that cuts through a stream, flanked by tall trees everywhere you look, and signs marking private property. That's where the Mayes County Sheriff's Office say a 14-year-old boy was beaten up Tuesday afternoon, down Copperhead Road, west of Locust Grove.

Detectives say it happened around 4 o'clock, near where the creek crosses the road.

They say the 14-year-old suffered a number of injuries, many of them life threatening, and had to be flown to a Tulsa hospital.

The sheriff's office says a 17-year-old boy is the one responsible, and may be charged with assault and battery, as well as failure to render aid.

Investigators are now trying to piece together the boy's day. They want to know how well they know each other. Did they get into a fight earlier in the day, or was this something random? They say they want any clues they can find that may help figure out why a 14-year-old boy was beaten unconscious.

Neighbors, who declined to be identified, tell us the 17-year-old is no stranger to law enforcement. They say he's been reported to police several times for stealing.

Detectives are looking to charge the 17-year-old as a juvenile, as they've turned over their information to the Oklahoma Office of Juvenile Affairs.

They do not know when a decision will be made on what charges will be filed.