Homophobic hate crime leaves teenager with blood running down his face
Police are investigating a homophobic hate crime which saw a teenager rushed to hospital with blood pouring down his face.
The 19-year-old gay man had just left the OMG nightclub in the centre of Bristol when he was accosted and assaulted by two men.
The victim was also abused with offensive slurs, which have led the police to classify the attack as a hate crime.
Just before 4am on Sunday morning, on a high street in the centre of the city, the teenager was approached and verbally abused by the two men, Avon and Somerset Police said.
One of the men then punched him in the face.
The victim was treated at Bristol Royal Infirmary for injuries to his face.
Investigating officer PC Leanne Weeks said: “This was an extremely unpleasant and unprovoked assault on a man who was targeted because of his sexuality.
“It’s hard to understand how and why someone would do this and we’d urge people to come forward and help us if they can.”
She described the offender who carried out the assault as “white, of slim build, around 20 to 23 years old, with light brown hair in a quiff style which was short at the sides.
“He was wearing a baby blue long-sleeved shirt and black skinny jeans.
“The man who was with him, who used homophobic language, is white, aged 23 to 25 years old, around 6ft, of muscular build, with dark brown hair also in a quiff style and short at the sides, with a short-cut well-groomed beard.
“He was wearing a dark long-sleeved shirt and black jeans.”
PC Weeks gave assurances that the police were “reviewing CCTV from around the area and will be making further enquiries with venues in the area to try and identify these two men.”
She asked anyone with information to come forward as soon as possible.
Earlier this year, gay couple Phil Poole and Zbynek Zatloukal were on a London-bound train back from a Valentine’s Day date in Reading when they were attacked by a bunch of thugs.
The pair were both repeatedly punched and kicked during the hate crime, and were left with horrific injuries requiring hospital treatment.
And just last month in Portsmouth, five lesbians were set upon by more than 15 men, in a homophobic beating which left some missing teeth.
One woman said she feared she would die from the attack, another lost seven front teeth from a single punch and a third had a fit after she was left bleeding.
