The mother of a young man who has been scarred for life after being attacked with a machete has revealed he was just minutes from death.
The 20 year old was calling to see a friend in Buncrana during the early hours of December 27th last when he was set upon in an unprovoked attack.
The young man received a horrific slash to his face and another to his back when a row ensued after one of his two attackers made a remark to his friend.
The victim also received a horrific machete wound to his back during the gruesome attack at Earlsfort Avenue in Buncrana just before 2am.
The victim’s mother has said her son is scarred for life but she is just thankful that he is still alive after the attack.
She pleaded not to be identified as she does not want her son or any of her other family members to be targeted by the men she thinks are responsible for the attack.
She said “I know he will have a scar on his face for the rest of his life but in a way he is just lucky to be here with us today.
“He was also slashed in the back and the doctors told us that if was another inch or so in the other direction then his lung would have been punctured.
“My daughter went with him in the ambulance and at one stage they were frightened he would not make it as his heart rate was dropping rapidly.
“But I have to say that the staff at Letterkenny Hospital were brilliant and they did a really good job on stitching him up,” she said.
The woman said that her son is now on anti-biotics but it is the psychological trauma which is going to hurt him most.
He is back in the family home in Buncrana and has only ventured outside the door for a brief time since the attack.
“He’s petrified. He knows he’s going to be scarred but he just can’t get over what happened and he keeps on reliving it over and over time and time again in his head,” said the woman.
The woman said she could not believe it when her son phoned her and told her that he had been attacked.
“He managed to get to a local park and was hiding. He was terrified. When I found him I just could not get over the amount of blood and his poor face was just split wide open.
“We phoned an ambulance and to be fair they were here in fifteen minutes and he was away to hospital for treatment straight away,” she added.
The woman said that her son has identified his attacker to her and she has passed on information to the Gardai about the matter.
To date no arrests have been made.
However, Garda Inspector David Murphy has confirmed that a full investigation into the incident has been launched and that the matter is being treated “very seriously.”
The victim’s mother says she only wants to see someone brought to justice for her son’s attack.
“We will not rest until someone is arrested and pays for this. We know who done this and we want him arrested and brought to justice for what he has done,” she added.