Dancing without a care in the world, clubbers before acid attacker wounds 12
HUNDREDS of revellers fled in terror after an attacker sprayed acid at a trendy nightclub.
Police were last night hunting a man who injured 12 partygoers at the basement venue in Dalston, east London.
Emergency services cordoned off the area in the early hours of Easter Monday amid initial fears of an industrial chemical spill.
But police quickly discovered an acidic liquid had been sprayed at two men after a dance floor fracas.
The pair, both in their 20s, suffered burns and were taken to hospital where their condition was described as ‘serious’. At least ten others suffered more minor injuries.
Last night detectives were working to identify the culprit, who was caught on CCTV at the sold-out ticketed event.
The attack is the latest in a rising number involving acid and other corrosive fluids that can blind and cause disfiguring burns.
Police are investigating at least one attack a day involving such substances, favoured by street gang members because they are cheap, easy to obtain and difficult to trace.
Officers were called to Mangle nightclub – in a converted industrial laundry unit beneath a daytime restaurant – shortly after midnight yesterday morning.
Videos and photos posted on social media showed more than 600 people packed in for a house musicOne partygoer,event called who LoveJuice.was at the club with his girlfriend, said: ‘When we arrived our tickets were scanned and we were patted down … Security was tight on the door, and on the floor space there were plain-clothed security too.
‘I went to the bathroom and saw a black man with white marks all over his torso. He was trying to wash them and said they were burning him.
‘As we went outside I heard an officer talking to the doormen and telling them to get the manager out as they were shutting the womanthe placeclub whose down entrance home immediately.’said overlooks emer- A gency services sealed off the area and officials in protective clothing went inside. ‘I thought it was a stabbing because of the way all the security were shouting at people to move away,’ she said. ‘Everyone was being moved down the other end of the street … People looked confused and worried.’ Maxim Ge, 30, who lives nearby, added: ‘I could see a guy with a burned elbow. It was all black and the paramedics were treating him in the road. There was a big crowd coming out, like 400 people.’ A relative of ex-Premier League footballer Jamie O’Hara was among the injured. The former Tottenham player condemned the ‘sick’ attack which left his cousin Sadie Wright with burn marks on her face and scalp. A Metropolitan Police spokesman said there was a ‘dispute between two groups’, adding: ‘This resulted in a noxious substance being sprayed by a male suspect … it is believed to have been acidic.’ A spokesman for Mangle said it was co-operating with police.