Beaten up for being gay - student left covered in blood after homophobic attack in Liverpool

Video report by ITV Granada Correspondent Andrew Fletcher.

A student says he was left covered in blood after he was subjected to a homophobic attack in Liverpool.

He was assaulted outside a kebab shop in the early hours of Monday 30 August after a night out at the Jamaica Street carnival. 

Kolade Ladipo, 21, says his attacker mouthed a homophobic slur before punching him to the ground.

Kolade says he was verbally assaulted three times and attacked in the same day.

He said the man and the man's friend became violent and left him with a busted lip when Kolade's friends confronted them.

He said: "It became very aggressive and it became this massive thing where he was just pushing and punching, and that's how I ended up bleeding loads.

"I was pushed to the floor and it was just so alarming that the whole time I'm screaming 'just because I'm gay, what's wrong with you? Just because I'm gay you're causing a scene."

The area where he was attacked was extremely busy as people left nightclubs during the bank holiday celebrations, but Kolade says nobody tried to help him.

"Nobody said anything", he said. "Nobody asked if I was ok. No-one asked to walk me home. Not a single person. There were so many people just watching."

This is the latest in a series of homophobic attacks to occur in Liverpool city centre in recent weeks.

Kolade has decided not to report his attackers to the police because he is not confidence that they would support him.

Merseyside Police says anyone who is the target of any hate crime must feel confident to come forward.

Superintendent Sarah Kenwright, from Merseyside Police, said: "My message to victims who are reluctant to report is I would really encourage you to have the trust and confidence in Merseyside Police to help you.

"We want to ensure that we support you as victims to support the rest of the LGBT community to feel safe going about their daily business.

"We ensure that victims get the help that they need and that we proactively investigate any crimes that have taken place."

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