A man has been set on fire during a homophobic attack in Teesside.
The unnamed 20-year-old man was walking through Holy Trinity churchyard in Stockton-on-Tees at around 3am on Wednesday when he was verbally abused with homophobic slurs by four men.
The man ignored them and carried on walking, listening to music on his headphones, when he felt an “intense heat” on the back of legs.
Gas from an aerosol can had been sprayed on the back of his legs and then set alight.
The victim was immediately taken to a local hospital where he underwent skin grafts.
Speaking to ITV News, Detective Inspector Jon Tapper, of Cleveland Police, said: “Clearly it's a very shocking attack, the victim sustained serious injuries.
"He received hospital treatment and has to return for further surgery.
“Cleveland Police treat all hate crime extremely seriously. It will not be tolerated. It is exactly what it says, it is a crime that is purely motivated by hate.”
A police spokeswoman added: “The man who lit the aerosol is described as white, in his early 20s, medium build, with short blonde hair. He was bare chested and wearing jogging bottoms.
Officers are treating the attack as a homophobic hate crime and are asking anyone with information to come forward.
