A COUPLE were set upon by a gang of thugs in a horrific homophobic attack outside a nightclub in Basildon.

Dan Wilson and Rob Morris “thought they were going to die” during the attack when they were beaten by the group of five men outside Colors on Southernhay.

Homophobic abuse was also hurled their way, with Rob dressed in drag for the night out.

The couple, who left the nightclub around 1am on Sunday morning, were kicked, punched, and stamped on just metres from their flat.

READ MORE:

A police probe has been launched into the violent attack.

Dan, 36, said: “It was terrifying, we didn’t know if they had any weapons.

“Rob had been dressed in drag at the time. We knew straightaway they were coming straight for us.

“We’re covered in cuts and bruises, and I’ve got cracked ribs.

“Rob came off worse, we had a heads stamped on by them.

“It was horrible. We’re so grateful for the couple who stepped in to help. They prevented it getting any worse.

“This kind of thing just shouldn’t be happening. Basildon is meant to be promoting the LGBT community.”

The couple took themselves to A&E following the attack.

They claim they made five 999 calls to Essex Police in the immediate aftermath of the attack, but officers failed to attend.

Investigating officers first made contact on Monday.

Dan’s father, Dave Wilson, added: “It’s horrible, I keep getting really upset about it.

“These people need to be named and shamed. I’m completely lost for words at what happened.

“The were shouting homophobic chants while beating up my son, it’s disgusting.

“They just came at them outside out of nowhere. The police need to catch them and make sure punished.”

The couple were discharged from hospital on Sunday.

A spokesman from Essex Police, said: “We are investigating after a man was assaulted in Southernhay, Basildon in the early hours of Sunday 10 October.

“The victim sustained a number of injuries after being attacked by a group of five people who also shouted homophobic abuse at him.An officer has been allocated to the investigation.

“He has been in contact with the victim and our enquiries are ongoing.

"We know how distressing these incidents are and we try to respond to as many calls as possible with officers attending as many incidents as possible.

"However, a number of factors could impact on our ability to respond including the number of incidents taking place within the district, or within the county, that require a high level resource.

"There may also be a large number of emergency calls that officers are attending.

"At the time this incident was called into us, all our available officers were deployed elsewhere."

Call 101 quoting crime reference number 42/225795 with information.