Boy accused of 'honour' acid attack

A teenage boy was today accused of trying to kill a man in an alleged “honour” acid attack in the UK.

The 24-year-old victim was suspected of having an affair with a married Muslim woman who has since been warned her life may be in danger.

He is fighting for his life in hospital after a masked gang forced him to swallow sulphuric acid, stabbed him twice in the back and beat him.

Detectives charged the 16-year-old boy with attempted murder at an east London police station today.

The teenager was one of seven young men arrested since the attack in Marchant Road, Leytonstone, east London, in the early hours of July 2.

The victim, who is from Denmark, managed to escape and raise the alarm after neighbours heard his screams and shouting.

Police are examining his relationship with a woman whose family is from Pakistan. Her brother is believed to be one of those linked to the attack.

The victim is under police guard at Broomfield Hospital in Chelmsford, Essex, but police fear he will not survive.

He suffered burns to at least 50% of his body when the acid was poured over him. His tongue has been burned away.

The man was also blinded in one eye and left with several facial fractures after he was beaten with bricks.

The chemical was so corrosive it has marked the pavement where the attack took place. Spatters of blood remains on a nearby fence.

A Metropolitan Police spokesman confirmed that one line of inquiry is that the victim was attacked over his friendship with a woman.

He said: “A 16-year-old male has today been accused of the attempted murder of a 24-year-old man in Leytonstone on July 2. He is due to appear before Waltham Forest magistrates this afternoon.”

Two men aged 25 and 19, from the Walthamstow area, appeared at Waltham Forest Magistrates’ Court yesterday charged with attempted murder. They will appear at the Old Bailey on September 30.