A "nasty and degrading" attack on two men on Frinton beach is being treated as a homophobic assault.

The men were on the beach at about 4am on Monday when they were robbed and assaulted.

One of the victims, who are both 24, was forced to hand over his shirt. The robbers also demanded he remove his trousers.

The man, who did not want to be named, said he and his friend were both heterosexual but the robbers had quizzed them about their sexuality and repeatedly asked if they were gay.

This has led police to believe the attack could have been homophobically motivated.

The victim told the Gazette: "Basically it had been hot and we were at the beach getting some fresh air and chatting. Four youths came from the greensward and two of them came over and started chatting to us.

"They weren't terribly friendly but they weren't particularly aggressive either. Then they basically said what would we do if they took my watch and any money we had on us.

He said: "They threw some initial punches and then they wanted to see my watch. Then they wanted to see what was in my wallet. They chucked it on the floor and then made me pick it up.

"When I got back up one of them punched me in the face and my glasses smashed and I got some lacerations from that.

"One of them got some blood on his hands so he made me give him my shirt and he wiped his hands on it."

Once the victim had handed over his shirt, the robbers demanded he take off his trousers.

The victim said: "I thought that they wanted to leave me there naked and I refused several times. They were becoming more and more aggressive. I turned round and saw my keys lying on the ground so I grabbed them and made a run for it."

But the robbers caught up with their victim on the greensward and tried to drag him back to the beach. He managed to escape and drove home in his car.

The second victim got away while his friend was being chased.

Anyone with information should contact Clacton police on 01255 221312 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555111

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