UK

Acid or 'noxious substance' used as a weapon in six cases in the north

Six offences have been recorded in the north in three years 
Six offences have been recorded in the north in three years  Six offences have been recorded in the north in three years 

The PSNI have said that six offences have been recorded where a noxious substance or acid had been used as a weapon from 2012 to November 2015

The force said they included offences where no injury may have occurred, such as threats to kill or attempted assault.

Three victims were male and three were female. Bleach was used in four of the incidents, white spirit was used in one incident and an unknown substance in one incident.

Violent crimes involving acid and other corrosive liquids in the UK have soared by 30% in the last two years.

Police have recorded more than 500 offences in which people were injured or threatened with harmful substances since 2012, an investigation by the Press Association found.

They included 242 reports of violent crime which mentioned acid or other corrosive substances across 23 forces in 2014 and 2015, compared with 186 alleged offences in 2012 and 2013.

One acid attack victim said he believed criminals were using corrosive substances as a “cheaper alternative” to guns and knives.

Wayne Ingold, 57, had sulphuric acid thrown at his face at his block of flats in Witham, Essex, in 2014 in a case of mistaken identity.

Wayne Ingold had acid thrown at him (Philip Toscano/PA)

The father of two said: “There has to be a stronger deterrent because these crimes are on the rise. It’s got ridiculous now. One day someone will get killed.

“We had gun crime and knife crime – acid seems to be a cheaper alternative. How would these people feel if a member of their family was the victim?”

A letter written to Wayne by Jake McCabe, one of the attackers who threw acid (Philip Toscano/PA)

The Press Association sent Freedom Of Information requests to every police force in the UK asking how many assaults had been recorded involving acid or other corrosive substances since 2012.

Some forces provided details of all violent crime reports mentioning corrosive liquids including threats when the substance may not have been used. A number of forces provided their total number of offences since 2012 but did not break down the figures for each year.

Forces recorded 503 offences between 2012 and November 2015 (Anthony Devlin/PA)

In total, 503 offences in which people were injured or threatened with corrosive substances were recorded by forces between 2012 and November 2015, according to the police figures.