Mangle E8 acid attack: Police probe nightclub security amid fears victim ‘could go blind’
Mangal E8 is evacuated after the suspected acid attack. Picture: Phie McKenzie/@PhieMcKenzie - Credit: Archant
A victim of the horrific acid attack in London Fields nightclub Mangle E8 could go blind, the Gazette understands.
Police are still hunting for the man who is believed to have thrown a noxious substance after a fight in the venue in the early hours of yesterday morning.
The two men believed to have been targeted suffered “serious facial injuries” and a police spokesman told the Gazette one of them could have his eyesight affected.
They are both being treated in a specialist burns unit in Essex.
Ten other clubgoers were also taken to hospital for treatment to minor burns after police and medics were called at 1.10am.
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One witness whose foot was burnt said she initially did not realise the severity of her injury.
The 25-year-old, who asked not to be named, said: “It was very, very packed in there, all of a sudden down at the back bit of the bar everybody started moving out of the way, I thought there had been a fight.
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“Everyone was like ‘go, go, go’ and ‘let’s move, let’s move’.
“Then they started getting everyone out, at the time I didn’t realise I had been attacked, I thought someone had dropped a cigarette on my foot but it was getting more red and stinging.”
The victim said she had been left with a red circle the size of a 50p piece around her toes, and questioned how the substance made its way passed the security of the club.
“It is scary because you just go out to have a good night and you realise how close it could have been to being a lot worse,” she added. “I’m a bit disappointed with the club because they were frisking and checking our bags, but there were a considerable amount of people hurt so it must have been a whole bottle, it shouldn’t have got into the club.”
Six-hundred people were evacuated from the Love Juice event, and the police spokesman told the Gazette officers had launched a probe into the venue’s security measures.
He also confirmed the incident was not gang-related. “Noxious substances are increasingly being used as a weapon but it’s unusual for it to be seen in a nightclub,” he said. “We’re seeing more and more attacks on the streets and it’s becoming a gang weapon but this wasn’t gang related. It was an isolated incident.”
The venue said in a statement: “We are currently cooperating with the police’s investigation into an incident that occurred on Monday morning. At this stage, we cannot offer any further comment.”
The attack comes a week after a 40-year-old man suffered life-changing injuries after he and his family had acid thrown at them in Copenhagen Street, Islington in broad daylight.
Anyone with information about the nightclub attack is asked to call police on 101 or phone Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.
