Vile trolls spammed a gay man's social media with horrific homophobic abuse in the days after he was attacked in Liverpool city centre.
The 24-year-old feared he would die during a violent homophobic attack that left him bruised and bloodied on Bold Street in the early hours of Saturday, July 10.
Merseyside Police have arrested two men over the attack that made national headlines and sparked condemnation from Mayor of Liverpool Joanne Anderson, Metro Mayor Steve Rotheram, and Police and Crime Commissioner Emily Spurrell.
READ MORE: Anger and disgust across city after homophobic attack leaves man fearing for his life
This is the latest in a series of attacks that have sent fear, anger and defiance through the LGBT+ community in Merseyside and further afield.
But for the victim, a PGCE graduate, the abuse didn't stop there.
In the days since he was battered for being gay, internet trolls have sent the Belfast man hate filled messages and death threats telling him he deserved the attack and should stop being gay.
One hateful message told him to 'burn in hell.'
But the victim, a Liverpool Hope University graduate, remains defiant, fighting back with humour.
He thanked them for their feedback, telling the abuser: "Only if you burn with me."
Speaking to the ECHO, he said : "I'm able to laugh at them and try to be funny back because they really don't bother me. I was scared when I was attacked, I'm not scared of a keyboard."
He added: "I'm not afraid of them and I'll keep exposing them whilst the spotlight is on my case because they don't deserve to hide behind a keyboard."
The 24-year-old hasn't reported the homophobic abuse online to the police because he has already made two statements regarding the attack and doesn't feel up for going through it again.
In a statement to the ECHO at the weekend, Chief Inspector Col Rooney said: "This was an appalling incident which left a young man shaken and injured. Although we have made arrests, our investigations into the attack will continue.
"As well as physical violence, we believe that homophobic slurs were directed at the victim and we are treating the attack as a hate crime. This type of behaviour brings shame on our city, and it has rightly outraged many people. We share this anger - targeting anyone based on their sexual orientation or gender identity has no place whatsoever on Merseyside.
"High visibility officers are out tonight in Liverpool's Pride Quarter and beyond, and they will continue to patrol over the coming days and weeks.
"After a number of worrying incidents over the last month, we want our LGBT+ community to be reassured that we stand with them: we are committed to protecting them, and we will do whatever we can to bring offenders to justice.
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