Arthur Collins is on trial for causing grievous bodily harm after throwing acid across a packed dancefloor in April
A clubber who was hit by acid thrown by the ex-boyfriend of Towie star Ferne McCann told a court how her dress was left moulded to her arm.
Arthur Collins, 25, burnt 16 people at the packed Love Juice event at the Mangle E8 nightclub in Hackney, east London over the Easter Weekend.
Collins admits throwing the acid – but claims he through it was a date rape drug.
Giving evidence today, Tamara-Jane Castle said she felt a burning sensation on her arms, shoulders and the top of her back, which were exposed by her backless dress.
She said she ‘couldn’t feel the acid until it started getting hot’ and described it as ‘like when you burn yourself – it doesn’t hurt automatically it blisters and then hurts’.
Ms Castle added: ‘I had blisters automatically on my arm and pieces of my dress started moulding to my arm where [the material] was so hot.’
She told Wood Green Crown Court how she recognised Collins when he asked her to take a picture of his friend.
Police and emergency services were called to the nightclub after the incident at Easter
Ms Castle said she believes Collins and co-defendant Andre Phoenix, 21, asked for the photo just after the acid had been thrown.
‘Two gentlemen came towards me and one started to say aggressively ‘take a picture of my mate’s face’.
‘I didn’t know him personally but through social media and that. It was Arthur Collins. He was agitated, I would say slightly concerned.
‘I took a picture of his face but where there were so many people shoving the picture wasn’t clear.’
Prosecutors have suggested the photo was an attempt by Collins to cover his tracks by implying he and Phoenix were victims.
George Carter-Stephenson QC, defending Collins, asked Ms Castle why she did not tell police about the incident in her first statement.
Collins was well known at the time as the boyfriend of Towie star Ferne McCann. They have since split, although she is pregnant with her baby
She replied: ‘There were two boys whose faces were nearly peeling off. I thought they were taking a picture of their injuries so they could see the extent of them.
‘To be honest I couldn’t think until I was looking at my phone the next day, I couldn’t remember everything when I had just had acid thrown over me.’
Miss Castle admitted she was not certain if Collins asked for the photo before or after the acid had been thrown.
She also agreed her injuries may have been sustained as a result of other victims brushing up against her on the packed dancefloor.
Mustahpa Yeserengul, who was supervising the VIP area on the night, was called to the dance floor to break up a fight.
He is standing trial with Andre Phoenix (pictured in a court sketch together at a previous hearing). Prosecutors say they got into an argument with three men before the incident
Mr Yeserengul said: ‘When I got to the dance floor I saw lots of people pushing here and there. A few people were saying “please calm down, calm down”.
‘I saw two black guys there – their muscles were big. I was trying to calm them down and somebody from behind splashed something.
‘I didn’t hear anything because it was so noisy in there. I felt a cold substance on my ear. The black guys were saying ‘oh my face’.
‘They were trying to get out from the bar and I was aiding them to get out from the bar.’
Collins and Phoenix, both deny five counts of causing grievous bodily harm with intent and 11 counts of assault occasioning actual bodily harm on 17 April.
The trial continues.
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