STRICTLY’S BATTERED STARS RISE Anneka AJ’s anger as cops fail to catch any of his eight attackers is really cutting it on the dancefloor She’s bloody and bruised in training
STRICTLY pro AJ Pritchard is furious after police failed to collar anyone over his savage beating at the hands of eight thugs in a packed nightclub.
The star has been told the case against the only man who faced court after the Boxing Day assault will no longer go to trial.
AJ – who wowed the show’s nine million viewers last night partnering YouTuber Saffron Barker – is still dogged by flashbacks to the attack.
The 24-year-old was left with bruises all over his face, arms and legs after he and his dancer brother Curtis were set upon at 2am in a nightclub crammed with witnesses and covered by CCTV.
Yesterday the police force at the centre of the probe told the Sunday Mirror the case against the only charged suspect had now been “discontinued”.
A friend of AJ’s told us: “He’s very upset. He feels justice has not been served.
“He’s been the victim of a violent crime and nothing has been done.”
The attack happened at the popular Nakatcha club in Nantwich, Cheshire.
AJ’s pal added: “Even though he has tried to forget it and move on, he gets flashbacks.
“He worries about him or others being targeted again.
“It’s very upsetting for both him and Curtis.” Cheshire Police said there was “insufficient evidence” to carry on the probe into the horrific attack, which left Love Island star Curtis, 23, needing surgery on his knee.
A spokesman said: “Officers launched an investigation and since then have carried out numerous enquiries – including speaking to a number of witnesses, reviewing a large amount of CCTV footage and conducting forensic enquiries.
“As a result, a 21-year-old man was arrested and subsequently charged with assault. However, the case against him has since been discontinued at magistrates’ court. At this stage, there is insufficient evidence to progress the case any further and the victims have been fully updated.”
Curtis, who came fourth on the ITV dating show this summer with partner Maura Higgins, previously said the attack may have been motivated by jealousy.
He told how AJ had been posing with fans and “is a good-looking lad”.
The brothers recalled the horrifying details of the night during a joint appearance on ITV’s This Morning, six days after the attack.
Curtis said: “We were minding our own business, having one of the best nights ever… I just had a push to my right.”
AJ, who dates dancer Abbie Quinnen, added: “By the time he went to look who had pushed him he was punched – blindsided from the right.”
His brother, a dancer on the Irish version of Strictly, Dancing With The Stars, continued: “I’m lucky AJ was there. If I was still stood where I was, I’d have been in a worse way.
“He managed to get me to safety. We weren’t there for trouble. We wanted to have a good time.”
AJ added: “The adrenaline kicked in and you just protect each other as brothers. Seeing him getting kicked multiple times, I just wanted to get both of us out as soon as possible.”
The pair received an outpouring of support on social media over the savage attack.
AJ is not the only Strictly star targeted by yobs. Fellow pro Gorka Marquez was attacked in 2016 in Blackpool, losing two teeth.
And last month Giovanni Pernice was blinded with pepper spray by masked muggers who grabbed his watch and rucksack in Epping, Essex.
The Italian dancer, partnered with Michelle Visage in this series, was treated by paramedics.
Ex-Strictly pro Pasha Kovalev, 39, was robbed of his mobile phone by moped muggers in London in June.
Police added of AJ’s attack: “We will always act on new information and anyone who can assist with enquiries is urged to call us.”
He’s upset. He’s been the victim of a violent crime and nothing’s been done STAR’S PAL ON HOW DANCER REACTED TO CASE BEING AXED
ANNEKA Rice reckons her biggest Challenge on Strictly could be just to stay out of hospital – after suffering a string of injuries in rehearsals.
The TV game show legend has been left black and blue while training for her Movie Week Charleston, inspired by Kill Bill.
She said: “This has been a very physical week – it’s been murder on the dance floor.
“I’ve been covered with bruises and blood, it hasn’t been a walk in the park.”
And she admitted she was so focused on learning the moves she did not even notice