Pic: Metropolitan Police
Police are hunting a man who punched a woman in the face outside a nightclub in Hoxton.
They have released a CCTV image of a man they wish to trace in connection with the attack that took place on June 14 at around 4.45 am.
The suspect was seen punching the victim in her face as she left the club, causing her to injure her head as she fell to the ground.
The 30-year-old victim was taken to an East London hospital where she required 20 stitches to her lip and staples to her head as a result of the attack.
The man in question is described as between 25 and 30 years old, 5ft 8ins with short brown hair and was seen wearing a black T-shirt and blue jeans.
Police are appealing for anyone who can identify the suspect or who witnessed the attack.
The assault took place on Drysdale Street.
Suspect on the street Pic: CCTV from Metropolitan Police
The ward is Hackney’s worst hotspot for prevailing violent crimes against a person and has one of the highest violent crime rates in London according to Metropolitan Police figures.
Pic: Metropolitan Police data and London data store
Out of 649 wards in Greater London, Hoxton East and Shoreditch has the 5th highest crime rate for violence against a person with Fairfield in Croydon ranking joint 3rd.
Pic: Metropolitan Police data and London data store
The number of violent crimes in the ward has increased by 37 per cent in one year according to data released by MPS.
There were 778 reports of violence against a person in the ward between May 2014 and May 2015 compared to a total of 567 in the previous year.
The local Safer Neighbourhoods team have prioritised assault and alcohol related crimes in the area due to the high volume of people drinking in Shoreditch and Hoxton street at the weekends.
Police have significantly increased the number of officers on patrol in these areas as well as taking a no nonsense approach to partygoers consuming alcohol on the street.
Local off licenses have also been reminded of their responsibilities and are having their licenses reviewed as part of the crackdown to prevent the sale of alcohol to underage or intoxicated drinkers.
Anyone with any information on the assault is asked to contact Detective Constable Sophie Hayes from Hackney CID via 101 quoting reference number 4614922/15 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.
