Thug left footprint on Plymouth man's face in mystery attack

A VIOLENT thug stamped so hard on a chef's head he was left with a bootprint on his bloodied face.

Police are now hunting the vicious attacker who left the 20-year-old victim half unconscious at a city crossroads.

Anthony Wood, from Southway said his last memory was leaving a friend's flat in George Street, Devonport at around 3.45am on Friday.

He walked a mere 50 yards to the junction of Chapel Street and Cumberland Road where he waited for a taxi he had ordered.

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The next thing Anthony remembers is being in a hospital bed at around 11.30am the same day. However, his mother Mary, recounts with distress Anthony's desperate phonecall after the assault.

She said: "It was around 4am and there was this horrendous blood-curdling noise coming down the line. As a parent, you know it's your son. He could hardly speak and was completely and utterly dazed. He was able to tell us he was near his nan's home and by then we were already in the car trying to find him.

"I was trying to keep him awake and on the phone. When I asked if I should call the police, he said yes. We could pick out bits of what Anthony was saying, so I had two phones going as we tried to find him."

When she found her bruised and bloodied son, Mary, aged 46, said it took her back seven years when Anthony had been struck by a quad bike. Then his severe head injuries necessitated two years of painful and traumatic recovery.

She said: "It was the same side of his face that this animal decided to stamp on."

Mary is adamant the suspect who attacked her son could be capable of far worse.

She said: "This person is going to kill somebody. If they are capable of doing this, they're capable of killing someone.

"It's a completely random and unprovoked attack. It's such a vicious attack and for what reason?

"What tore my heart out seeing him was that someone had stamped on his face. Every time I look at Anthony I'm reminded of what this evil animal has done. Even his eyelid has the foot print on it.

"When he was hit by the quad bike, he was ventilated, transferred from hospital to hospital, flown by air ambulance, it was traumatic, but that was an accident. This is worse because someone inflicted this on him"

The bootprint was still clearly visible yesterday and while no bones were broken he needed stitches to the inside of his mouth where his teeth have cut the skin.

He said: "The first time I saw myself in the mirror was Friday evening. It's put me off looking again. I didn't look again until yesterday, and it just makes me angry.

"I still can't eat, drink or speak properly. I'm on three sets of tablets, including painkillers and antibiotics. I want whoever did this to be punished.

"I've become very short tempered about it all." "

Investigators say Anthony was spotted on CCTV cameras with the obvious signs of his assault.

Det Con Sarah Rawlinson of Devonport CID said: "Looking at the CCTV, there doesn't appear to be anybody around. I thought at first he had fallen over, but the amount of injuries and the footprints on his face changed my mind.

"Luckily he has no broken bones."

Police want to hear from anyone who was in the George Street area between 3.45am and 4am on Friday, particularly any motorists or taxi drivers.

Anyone with information about the incident should call police on 101 or call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555111 quoting crime reference number ED/12/6564.