Vicious beat attack

A 46-year-old Wyndham man was attacked at a Port Melbourne beat on November 9.

The man was approached in the early hours of the morning by two men he described as being of Middle Eastern appearance and in their early 20s.

The two men, wearing matching light-coloured soccer shirts, ‘chatted up’ the man, using suggestive language, undoing their pants and showing parts of their body.

The man agreed to have sex, however, five other men and one woman then jumped from nearby bushes and attacked him.

“It was obviously well-planned,” the man said. “There were two main ringleaders. They were the ones doing all the talking and they were the ones being very suggestive and exposing themselves, and then they got me into a location… and the others turned up and they launched their attack.”

The man sustained minor head injuries, mainly a bleeding nose.

The group also hurled anti-gay verbal abuse at the man, calling him a “fucking poofter” and a “homosexual c–t”.

The man said he was hit twice on the face and twice on the head by the ringleaders while others in the group watched. The man said he believed the ringleaders used a key phrase to notify others in the group to strike.

“When he said, ‘Are you ready for it?’ then all the others turned up,” he said.

It’s believed other beat users fled the scene when they heard the attack.

Victoria Police Gay and Lesbian Advisory Unit acting sergeant Gabrielle Tyacke asked anyone who saw anything or who has been involved in a similar incident to come forward.

“We need more people to come forward to identify the offenders. We’re certain at the time this has occurred there were other people in the area and they would have at least seen something,” Tyacke said.

It’s believed the group arrived in two or three cars, one car described by the victim as a white or silver Nissan Skyline with round tail-lights.

Tyacke said it’s important men frequenting beats are aware of their safety. “If you’re going to a beat, you must have an escape route worked out,” she said.

info: Anyone with information can contact the GLLOs on 9247 6944 or report on the Anti-Violence Project website at www.antiviolence.info