Ferne ex ‘threw acid 3 times in club as he wore KILLER T-shirt’
Court told ‘no dispute’ on who caused injuries to 17
FERNE McCann’s ex-partner hurled acid across a packed dance floor three times during a row, a court heard.
Arthur Collins, 25, who is having a child with the TOWIE star, was wearing a T-shirt with the word “Killer” when he was caught on the nightclub’s CCTV.
Jurors heard he threw acid over the shoulder of accomplice Andre Phoenix and into victim Makai Brown’s face, then sprayed it twice more at others nearby.
A total of 17 were injured as innocent bystanders were hit.
Footage showed Mr Brown hit the floor clutching his face as revellers fled the dance floor.
The court heard Collins then tried to cover his tracks by making Phoenix, who was also hit, look like a victim.
Luke Ponte, prosecuting, said: “People are enjoying themselves, like any other club. And again, like anywhere else, a bit of trouble flares up. It doesn’t amount to much; some raised voices, a bit of pushing, a bit of shoving.
AGGRESSOR
“But it is clear how it ended – suddenly and decisively… One of the young men threw acid into the face of another young man. As that man went down in pain, the aggressor threw acid at them a second time and a third time.”
Mr Ponte said there was “no dispute” on who threw the acid, alleging that Collins and Phoenix, 21, took it to the Wringer and Mangle in Hackney, East London, on Easter Sunday. He said: “Who knows why they may have been ready for trouble but they were.”
After the attack, the jury was told, Collins asked a girl to take a snap of Phoenix’s face. Mr Ponte said: “It might be useful to have a photo of his friend looking like he was a victim, rather than an attacker.”
Collins denies knowing it was acid, saying he was passed a bottle and decided to throw it.
But the jury heard he texted his sister a week earlier saying: “Tell mum to mind that little hand wash in my car – acid.” Mr Brown said: “It hit the side of my face. I wouldn’t have been able to tell where it came from. I thought it was alcohol. It was only when I smelt it I realised it was something.”
Collins, of Broxbourne, Herts, and Phoenix, of Tottenham, deny five counts of GBH with intent and 11 counts of assault occasioning ABH. The Wood Green crown court trial continues.
Miss McCann, 27, is due to give birth to Collins’ child next month.
It was only when I smelt it I realised it was something MAKAI BROWN ON BEING HIT IN FACE BY ACID