A 20-year-old man has been taken to hospital for stitches after he was glassed in the face in a homophobic attack at a bar in Stratford, London.
Police are now appealing for the public’s help to identify a man following the incident, which occurred on 19 August.
At 11pm the victim was approached by an unknown man while with friends at a bar on The Grove in E15.
An hour later the unknown man began to make homophobic comments towards the victim.
According to London’s Metropolitan Police, the victim walked away from the man and sat down at another table, but a short time later, the victim was hit with a glass on the chin.
He was rushed to hospital for stitches.
Officers now want to identify and speak to the man in the image in connection with this incident.
Anyone with information or who may know the man pictured is urged to call 101 and quote reference 434/20AUG.
To remain anonymous please contact the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
This latest report comes after harrowing police statistics revealed a shocking rise in anti-LGBTQ+ violence in the UK.
In London, the statistics state that 434 hate crimes have been committed in the past year (2021-2022), which is the highest number recorded by any police force.
Manchester followed shortly behind England’s capital with 320.
This week, a gay man spoke to PinkNews about a terrifying homophobic hate crime he was a victim of, where teenage attackers tried to throw him into a London river.
Nathan Esslemonth, 25, said he was “nearly shown in the River Thames” as a result of the attack, which has left him feeling unsafe in the UK.