A DEFENCELESS young boy is today recovering in hospital after his jaw was shattered in a shocking attack in Ipswich town centre.

Simon Tomlinson

A DEFENCELESS young boy is today recovering in hospital after his jaw was shattered in a shocking attack in Ipswich town centre.

The 14-year-old from Ipswich suffered three fractures to his jaw and a bloodshot eye in the unprovoked assault outside the library in Northgate Street.

It was the latest in a spate of ugly incidents to plague the town.

The teenager was walking with four friends at around 6.30pm on Friday when the two men shouted at him before one of them punched him in the face.

The first man was white, aged 20 to 23-years-old and the second man was described as black and also aged between 20 and 23.

A police spokeswoman said: “This was a nasty unprovoked attack on a young boy.

“We are treating it very seriously.”

For more on this story, see tonight's Evening Star.