A Bangladeshi man is fighting for his life in a hospital and on the verge of losing his eyesight completely after being the victim of a vicious acid attack in London.
Muhammed Nawshad Kamal, 32, who works as a fast-food delivery driver, was attacked by two teenage schoolboys in Walthamstow area of east London on Thursday evening, reports British media quoting police.
The attackers, who were riding their own moped, had tried to steal Nawshad’s £2,500 scooter right after he made a pizza delivery at a house on Walpole Road in the area around 6pm, according to media reports.
Scotland Yard said a 14-year-old boy was arrested on Friday over the attack. He was interviewed on suspicion of committing grievous bodily harm.
However, The Sun in a report said the boy was later released under investigation while police on Saturday night arrested a 16-year-old boy on the same charge. He was in custody at an East London police station.
The Daily Mail reported that after Nawshad completed the delivery, two teenagers riding a scooter had approached him demanding the keys to his scooter. When he refused, they sprayed him with acid.
Nawshad, screaming in agony due to the contact with the corrosive substance, had banged on the door of the house in Walthamstow he had just delivered to.
But, as the scared residents did not open the door, the attackers continued to drench him with acid on their doorstep, said the report.
Nawshad, who has been living in Britain for eight years after coming from Bangladesh, worked for the Teras Turkish Barbecue take-away in Walthamstow, reported The Sun.
BBC in a report said that Nawshad received injuries to his throat, face, oesophagus and eyes and had been in an induced coma.
His friend Imran Rumel told reporters: "I have been to see him in hospital and he is in a terrible state ... I don’t know if he will ever see again."
The Daily Mail report also said the attack on Nawshad only stopped when a woman in a nearby car called for help.
Firemen and police had rushed to scene and poured water over him, who was sitting on the kerb and struggling to breathe after inhaling the liquid, witnesses said. Afterwards, he was taken to an east London hospital.
“He had his helmet open and it (acid) went in his eyes and nose,” a source close to the investigation said, according to the report.
Detective Chief Inspector Gordon Henderson, of Waltham Forest CID, told reporters: “This attack has left a man fighting for his life and with terrible eye injuries. This was an innocent man going about his work as a delivery driver, who may never see again.”
He said: “We have a suspect who is 14. I believe that the others who may be involved are of a similar age.”
Urging the locals with information on the attack and attackers to contact police, Henderson added: “It is imperative we arrest those responsible.”
The Independent also said in a report that just 30 minutes after that attack, the same teenagers carried out another identical attack on a second delivery driver in Tottenham.
However, the 32-year-old male victim was also treated in hospital but his injuries are not life-threatening, said the report.
Meanwhile, delivery drivers have demonstrated in London demanding better protection after being repeatedly targeted in a number of acid attacks, including five launched in just 90 minutes in July, said the Independent report.
It said acid attacks have contributed to a rise in violent crime across England and Wales in the past year, with recorded offences up by 13%.
Thursday, June 04, 2026
