Boy Who Was Set Afire Says He ‘Learned to Say No to Drugs’

Burn victim David Opont, in his first interview since he was set afire by a neighborhood bully on March 7, said Friday that the biggest lesson he learned from his ordeal was “to say no to drugs.”

In an interview on “CBS This Morning,” Opont, dressed in a suit and bow tie, smiled but kept his answers short and to the point.

When asked about his biggest lesson since a 13-year-old foster child tied him up and set him on fire, Opont said, “I learned to say no to drugs.”

Initial reports said Opont’s attacker, described by police as a neighborhood “bully,” tried to get him to take drugs.

Opont, who turned 12 the day after the youth set him on fire in the basement of an abandoned Brooklyn building, was treated at New York University-Cornell Medical Center and later was transferred to Jamaica Hospital for rehabilitation.

The youngster said it was painful for him to walk at first, but he added that his skin grafts did not hurt, although they were “itchy.”

On the show, a videotaped message from former President Ronald Reagan was shown.

Reagan said: “David, we were pleased to be able to see you and I hope that our paths cross again one day in the not-too-distant future. Please know that you’re still in our thoughts and prayers.”

Opont quickly responded, saying: “Thank you a lot.”