Essex couple victims of homophobic attack

A gay couple living in Basildon, Essex, were left “covered in cuts and bruises” after being attacked by a group of five men outside Colors nightclub on October 10. Speaking to the Echo, Dan Wilson and Rob Morris explained they were leaving the club at around 1 am while Morris was in drag, before they were targeted by the group who left Wilson with cracked ribs.

The pair took themselves to A&E after the attack, and claim to have made five 999 calls to Essex Police, with officers failing to attend the scene of the incident. Wilson described the attack as “terrifying”, adding: “It was horrible. We’re so grateful for the couple who stepped in to help. They prevented it getting any worse…This kind of thing just shouldn’t be happening. Basildon is meant to be promoting the LGBTQ+ community.”

Essex Police has confirmed it is now investigating the assault, saying all “available officers were deployed elsewhere” at the time of the incident. Dave Wilson, Dan’s father, has urged authorities to ‘name and shame’ the perpetrators, saying: “They were shouting homophobic chants while beating up my son, it’s disgusting…The police need to catch them and make sure punished.”