A 12-YEAR-OLD boy was among those inside a flat targeted in an overnight sectarian attack in Co Antrim.
Paint was thrown and a window broken on Wednesday night at the property at Sunnylands Grove in Carrickfergus.
The attack is being treated by police as a sectarian hate crime.
Police said it is understood four men may have been involved in the incident.
Four people were inside the ground-floor property when it was targeted – a 12-year-old boy, two men aged 18 and 37, and a 39-year-old woman.
Windows were boarded up at the flat yesterday following the attack, which was reported to police at about 11.55pm on Wednesday.
One nearby resident said he thought he heard banging overnight but only became aware of what happened the following morning.
Ulster Unionist assembly member John Stewart described the attack as "deplorable" and "deeply disturbing".
He urged anyone with information to contact police, saying that "such lawlessness cannot go unpunished".
"I have been speaking to some residents who have contacted me to highlight their deep concern," the East Antrim MLA said.
"There's quite a lot of elderly people who live in that area. It's quite a quiet area traditionally.
"It's pretty shocking to hear of something like this happening."
Police appealed for anyone with information about the incident to phone 101, quoting reference 2180 17/07/19.
