Gay couple Dan Wilson and Rob Morris shared with the Echo how they were brutally beaten by a mob after leaving a Basildon nightclub on Sunday night.

Upon leaving Colors around 1am to make their way home, the pair described how they were first verbally attacked by the group of five men who took particular issue with the fact that Morris was dressed in drag. There followed a serious beating, which took place a mere stone’s throw from the entrance of their apartment.

Wilson told the Echo, “It was terrifying, we didn’t know if they had any weapons. Rob had been dressed in drag at the time. We knew straightaway they were coming straight for us.

“We’re covered in cuts and bruises, and I’ve got cracked ribs. Rob came off worse, we had heads stamped on by them. It was horrible. We’re so grateful for the couple who stepped in to help. They prevented it getting any worse.”

The couple also said that despite five calls to the police after being beaten in the anti gay attack, no officers turned up to the scene. “This kind of thing just shouldn’t be happening,” Wilson continued, “Basildon is meant to be promoting the LGBT community.”

Essex Police released a statement about the assault describing “The victim sustained a number of injuries after being attacked by a group of five people who also shouted homophobic abuse at him. An officer has been allocated to the investigation. He has been in contact with the victim and our enquiries are ongoing.”

In regards to the failure of an officer to attend the scene, the statement described, “We know how distressing these incidents are and we try to respond to as many calls as possible with officers attending as many incidents as possible.

“However, a number of factors could impact on our ability to respond including the number of incidents taking place within the district, or within the county, that require a high level resource. There may also be a large number of emergency calls that officers are attending.”

There has been an increase in reports of homophobic attacks in the press, highlighting the necessity for proper Hate Crime laws.