Lancashire Police appeal for witnesses after man knocked unconscious in homophobic attack
The victim was asked if he was gay and if he had been at a local gay venue by two men who then knocked him unconscious.
Words: Alastair James; pictures: Pexels
Police are appealing for witnesses following a homophobic attack in Blackpool earlier in December.
According to Lancashire Police, a man was walking home from a night out when he was approached by two men who asked if he was gay on 9 December.
The man was also asked if he had been at a local gay venue, The Flying Handbag on Queen Street.
“We are keen to speak to anyone”
In an appeal issued on Tuesday 21 December police said the attack took place on Palantine road towards Central Drive in the city between 2 and 2:30 am.
Two men are said to have approached the 40-year-old man and asked what he’d been up to earlier that evening as well as if he was gay. The man was then hit on the side of the head, which caused him to lose consciousness.
Police describe the offenders as white, between 20 and 40-years-old and between 5ft 7ins and 5ft 9.
Detective Constable Paul Edmondson, of Blackpool CID, said: “This is a serious attack that caused the victim to lose consciousness. We are keen to speak to anyone who may have seen the incident, or who may have CCTV in the nearby area”
People can contact the police by dialling 101 or emailing 3291@lancashire.police.uk quoting log number 0995 of December 9.
Information can also be passed to Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.
Home Office figures on hate crime published in October show that hate crimes regarding sexual orientation increased seven percent (to 17,135) in the year to March 2021, while transgender hate crimes increased by 3 percent to 2,630.
Lancashire police recorded 479 incidents of hate crime against sexual orientation and 105 of transgender hate crime.