HGTV’s Tarek El Moussa recalls being arrested as a teen for attempted murder: 'I was lucky to be alive'

foxnews.com:

"Flip or Flop" star Tarek El Moussa is opening up more and more about his troubled past. In a new interview with People ahead of the release of his book, "Flip Your Life: How to Find Opportunity in Distress—in Real Estate, Business, and Life," El Moussa revealed an especially dark chapter of his life. "It's part of my story," he told the outlet. "We're all a product of our environment, and I grew up in that environment.

In order to thrive in that environment, you have to do certain things." As a teen, El Moussa was involved in a gang fight that resulted in an arrest, a charge for attempted murder and ultimately a short stay in a juvenile detention center.

In an excerpt from the book shared with People, El Moussa recalled how he became involved in the incident. The California-born TV personality shared that at the end of his sophomore year his "parents’ worst fears were realized.

I was barely making Cs in school, and I had a terrible attitude." He had intended to go to his girlfriend’s high school graduation, but that same day, a friend who had been dumped by a girl asked him to come to a park to fight a rival group.