CCTV footage shows man floored with one punch in Durham city centre
Police have issued CCTV footage of the moment a man was punched to the pavement in a Durham city centre attack.
The 24-year-old was shoved to the ground by one attacker, and after he got up he was flattened by a blow to the head from another man on Silver Street at 9pm on Saturday April 2.
Passers-by raised the alarm. The victim, who has asked not to be identified, suffered facial injuries, a snapped front tooth and hearing loss in his right ear.
His attackers, from a group of three men and a woman, were filmed casually walking away, past other people, in the direction of North Road.
The man who threw the punch was said to be tall, of medium build and had black hair.
He wore a light grey or white top, jeans, black and white trainers and a red coat.
Pc Paul Vickers said: This was a particularly nasty assault and there were several witnesses captured on the CCTV.
We would like to trace the group walking towards (him) when he was attacked, which included two young children, as well as anyone else who witnessed the incident.
Although (his) injuries were serious they could have been a lot worse, if not life-changing, and it is imperative we find the people responsible.
We have conducted extensive inquiries and trawled CCTV across the city and we are satisfied the group headed towards North Road.
I am now asking the public for help in identifying who these people are.''
Maxine Thompson-Curl, from the campaigning charity One Punch North East, added: One-punch assaults happen far too often, people need to understand the horrific consequences of a single punch.''