Witham harmful liquid attack: Victim may not have been target

Bramble Road was sealed off while police investigated the attack involving a "harmful liquid"

A man who has "potentially life-changing" injuries after a liquid was thrown over him may not have been the intended target of an attack in Essex.

Police were called to flats on Bramble Road in Witham at about 10:45 BST.

The man's injuries to his hands and face were described as not life-threatening.

The victim was taken to Broomfield Hospital in Chelmsford, while the police said they were looking for two men in connection with the attack.

Essex Police said the 56-year-old victim had gone down to collect his post from the communal entrance to the block of flats when he encountered two men banging on the door.

Essex's fire service said it sent six crews to the "chemical spill" in Bramble Road

'Wrong place'

Following a brief exchange the men threw the liquid, which was in a glass bottle, over the man and ran off.

Det Insp Leighton Hammett said: "The information we have currently gathered suggests the victim was not the intended target of this attack.

"Unfortunately he appears to have been in the wrong place at the wrong time."

The East of England Ambulance Service sent its Hazardous Area Response Team to the area, while fire crews left the area at 12:40 BST after "making the scene safe".