A teenager was left with more than 30 stitches in his face and head after a brutal assault in Liverpool. Sonny Barnett had just finished a 14-hour shift at Duke Street Market when he was attacked on Slater Street around midnight on April 11.
The attacker punched him in the right side of the face, causing him to fall to the ground. The man then fled the scene. Sonny and a passerby called police, who rushed him to the Royal Liverpool Hospital.
Sonny said: 'I was just walking and I saw him in the street. I didn't speak to him or anything and then he just came up to me and punched me. He broke all the right side of my face. He broke my cheek bone, eye socket, nose and jaw.' He required a seven-hour surgery and more than 30 stitches.
Doctors said the injury was so severe it looked like he had been hit with a metal bar. Sonny had to wait for the swelling to go down before undergoing surgery.
Merseyside Police have issued two appeals for information. Detective Inspector Tony Meakins said: 'This was a dangerous and reckless attack which left the victim seriously injured... This was an unprovoked incident which has shocked the community.'
Sonny said his physical recovery is going well, but he is dreading returning to late shifts due to psychological trauma. Police are urging anyone with information to come forward.
