A couple have told how they were sprayed in the face with a corrosive chemical and beaten by burglars in a horrifying attack.
The two, who wish to remain anonymous, were watching a film at home when hooded men entered their house last Sunday evening.
Before the pair could react, an intruder started spraying them with an unknown liquid, which has yet to be identified but smelled like bleach, reported the Manchester Evening News.
The man, 34, jumped up and began fighting off the two masked burglars while one of the intruders sprayed a chemical in the face of the other victim, a woman aged 29.
Keeping her eyes closed to protect herself, the woman grabbed her phone and ran into her garden to try and call police, while the burglars tried to get the man to give over keys to his Ford Ranger pickup truck and beat him with a brass fireplace tool stand.
Disorientated from the chemical substance and unable to contact police, the woman returned inside, it is reported.
The two burglars, who wore dark hoods and snoods, had the man pinned up against the wall, while they demanded the woman hand over her phone before dragging her into the upstairs office.
After spotting other valuable items in the room, they continued to spray her face with the unknown chemical that left her unable to see or speak.
The man eventually managed to break free and headed towards the front door and escaped while the burglars then left in a waiting car empty handed.
The incident in Bredbury, Stockport, has left the couple so traumatised they are planning to sell their home and move away.
Both suffered serious injuries and were rushed to hospital for checks with the woman having chemical burns and scratches to her eye cornea which require further treatment.
Her eyesight is currently blurry but doctors hope she will make a full recovery while the man was taken for brain scans and X-rays.
Speaking to the Manchester Evening News , the woman said the attack has left her feeling “totally on edge”.
She says the couple had hoped to soon start a family but are now putting those plans on hold.
“My boyfriend went out an hour ago for the first time and left me with the dogs,” she said.
“I cried the whole time he was out because the motion sensor on the security camera went off and I just panicked a bit.
“We’re going to put the house up for sale and move. Someone broke into our back window before and someone has been in our vehicle.
“This is the third time and it’s massive.”
A spokesman for GMP confirmed police are investigating the incident, reported the Manchester Evening News.
A spokesman for the force said: “We were called shortly after 7.45pm on Sunday 20 February to a report of an assault. It's believed two men entered the property and sprayed the occupants with liquid before assaulting one of them.
“Enquiries - including house-to-house visits and CCTV - are ongoing and no arrests have been made.”
