Appeal for witnesses to suspected homophobic assault in Cheltenham

Officers are appealing for witnesses to a suspected homophobic assault which took place in Cheltenham at the weekend.

At around 5.30am on Sunday morning (6 February) police became aware that a man had been found unconscious outside Hobbs on the Promenade.

The victim, a man in his late 30s, was found with a wound to his head and it was believed that he had been assaulted. He was taken to Gloucestershire Royal Hospital for treatment and has since been discharged and is recovering at home.

It has been reported that homophobic remarks had been made towards the victim by three men whilst he was at a nearby bar and this is believed to be the motive of the assault.

It is thought that the victim left Under The Prom between 4.30am and 5am and that the men followed and assaulted him on the Promenade.

The incident is being treated as a hate crime and investigating officers are asking anyone who saw what happened outside Hobbs or within Under The Prom to make contact with police.

Officers have gathered and reviewed CCTV footage from the area and enquiries are ongoing to identify those involved.

Information can be submitted online by completing the following form and quoting incident 82 of 6 February: https://www.gloucestershire.police.uk/tua/tell-us-about/cor/tell-us-about-existing-case-report/

Alternatively you can call police on 101 or speak to Crimestoppers anonymously by calling 0800 555 111 or online at https://crimestoppers-uk.org/