A reveller fears he has been blinded after ACID was sprayed in his face in a ‘homophobic’ attack outside a popular gay nightclub.
The 23 year-old is thought to have been hit with bleach in the hate crime involving two woman and a male assailant.
He and a male friend, 21, had struck up a conversation with the trio outside the club after being refused entry because it was past closing time.
But the women, thought to be Eastern European, began hurling homophobic abuse at the pair when they discovered they were gay.
The older victim said: “As we walked away I heard a man shout ‘Oi! Come here.’ At first I thought it was the doorman saying he’d changed his mind and we could go in.
“Then I saw this white guy with a beard, and his hand coming up with a water bottle that he squirted really hard into my face.
“It went right in my eyes and it sprayed into my friend’s mouth.
“My face was burning so much, I thought it was acid. I thought I would never see again and my face was melting.
“He poured every last drop onto us and then turned around and walked away, like it was mission accomplished.
“The chemical burnt the cornea in my left eye and the vision hasn’t cleared since. The doctors said it should hopefully return but there is no guarantee.
“My friend’s tongue was swollen and it looked like someone had scratched part of it away. It was horrible. “
Police are treating the attack at the Lightbox nightclub in Vauxhall, South London, as a homophobic hate crime because of comments made during the argument.
The victim added: “I feel this was a hate crime given where we were and the situation with the two girls.
“What’s playing on my mind is the fact that this guy has left his flat and thought ‘wallet, keys, bottle of bleach.’
“The guy has gone out with the intention of blinding someone.”
It later emerged that a third man had been hit in another random acid attack inside the venue earlier in the evening on Sunday.
All three men were treated at hospital.
Police have now released CCTV images of the suspects. There have been no arrests.
Orange Nation, the company that owns the Lightbox club, sad it was an ‘isolated incident’.
Mark Williams from Orange Nation said: “Unfortunately, there was a homophobic attack outside the cafe by Vauxhall Bus Station early on Sunday morning. This was an isolated incident and we have been speaking to police since it occurred, including supplying them with our CCTV footage of the local Vauxhall area.
”The police have confirmed there is no direct link with the venue or our customers. Our doors were closed at the time of the incident, with no gay events at the Lightbox that morning. Our extensive commitment with the council and Vauxhall One to provide a safe environment for everyone continues. Our thoughts go out to the victims of this awful attack and we wish them a speedy recovery.
”If you have any information on the incident or the suspects in the CCTV images please contact: Lambeth Community Safety Unit on 0208 649 2176 or 07909 906 168”.
