Celebrity Big Brother housemate and footballer Jamie O'Hara's cousin burnt in Hackney nightclub acid attack
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The cousin of footballer Jamie O'Hara was one of 12 acid attack victims in a packed nightclub.
The former Portsmouth and Tottenham Hotspur midfielder, 30, posted a picture of his relative on Twitter with burn marks on her face.
Hundreds of revellers fled the terrifying scene after an “unknown corrosive substance” was sprayed at clubbers at a venue in east London.
O'Hara, who appeared in Celebrity Big Brother earlier this year and was previously married to model Danielle Lloyd, wrote: "Sick that my cousin got burnt from this acid attack in Hackney, innocent people get injured for the sick act of violence, guy should get life."
Around 600 revellers were at the late-night Easter Sunday party, hosted by dance music promoters LoveJuice in a converted laundry in Hackney.
(Photo: Facebook/@WeAreLoveJuiceOfficial)
(Photo: Getty)
(Photo: Birmingham Post and Mail)
Police said an argument between two groups escalated when one side sprayed the “unknown corrosive substance” at the other.
Two victims were seriously injured, with another 10 caught up in the melee shortly before 1am.
Emergency services treated 10 patients for burns at the scene before taking them to hospital nearby. Two more arrived at hospital with similar injuries later on.
One witness, who asked not to be named, said: “In the party in the basement there were girls making noise, I saw their friends ordering a bottle of water - they were putting it on them, they were splashing it on their faces.
“It was like a war - the police were everywhere.”
(Photo: i-Images Picture Agency)
A spokeswoman for London Fire Brigade said: “The only information that we have is that it was an unknown corrosive substance thrown within the nightclub. It was identified by a PH paper test as a strong acidic substance.”
A Met Police spokesman said: “Two of those injured - Victims 1 and 2; both men aged in their 20s - remain in a serious but stable condition. The others were treated for minor injuries.
“Officers believe a dispute between two groups of people developed inside the venue, resulting in a noxious substance being sprayed by a male suspect directly at Victims 1 and 2. Other people inside the venue suffered the effects of the substance.
(Photo: i-Images Picture Agency)
“The substance is yet to be identified, but it is believed to have been acidic.”
The road around the Mangle club, in a basement underneath a restaurant, was closed off and other local businesses locked their doors to allow a hazardous area response team to work around the venue.
Police are still searching for the attacker but said there was nothing to suggest it was gang-related.