Woman tracked down nightclub attacker on Facebook

A woman nearly blinded in a nightclub attack tracked down her assailant on Facebook after police said they had no leads.

 

Published: 10:25AM GMT 18 Nov 2009

Jennifer Wilson Photo: MASONS

Jennifer Wilson, 20, was horrifically injured when Ashleigh Holliman, 22, rammed a pint glass into her face in an unprovoked nightclub attack.

The tanning salon receptionist was left lying on the dance floor with a deep gash just a centimetre below her left eye.

Holliman fled the scene without being identified after bouncers failed to detain her.

Police investigating the attack told her CCTV from the club was not clear and evidence had been cleared away from the dance floor by staff.

But Miss Wilson, from Oxhey, Herts., recognised one of Holliman's friends who she knew vaguely from Facebook.

She trawled the social networking site and searched through 200 of the man's 'friends' until she found a photograph of her attacker.

She even tracked down her address through a mutual friend on the site and gave it to Hertfordshire Police.

However, Holliman was out when officers arrived to arrest her - and they then asked Miss Wilson if she could find out where she worked.

So Miss Wilson went back on Facebook and discovered she was a hairdresser in Croxley Green, Herts.

Holliman was then arrested at work the following day and taken to a police station, where Jennifer picked her out from an identity parade.

The girl thug admitted actual bodily harm at St Albans Crown Court and was sentenced to 120 hours community service on November 10.

Speaking yesterday Miss Wilson, who has been left with an inch-long scar, said she was delighted to have caught her attacker but said police should have done more.

She said: ''In the end I had to do the police's job for them and track this girl down on Facebook.

''This girl had just been glaring at me all night long and then all of a sudden I was dancing with friends and she slammed the glass into my face.

''She managed to escape but I recognised one of her friends and decided to try and track her down because I didn't deserve what she did to me.''

The attack happened on March 21 as Miss Wilson danced on a raised stage in the Walkabout bar in Watford, Herts.

Recorder Peters QC awarded Jennifer £2,400 compensation and ordered Holliman to do 120 hours unpaid work.

He said: "In nine times out of ten people that glass people in a club go to prison.

"You now have a record and if you lose your control again, which you did that evening, you will end up going to prison."

A Hertfordshire Constabulary spokeswoman said: “Police were called 2.10am on Saturday March 21 to reports that a 20-year-old girl had been assaulted at Walkabout bar in Watford Town Centre.

“The incident had happened at 12.45am that morning and the victim said she thought she knew who it was. She requested police go to see her after 9am later that day, once she was out of hospital.

“Officers did this. Prior to police attendance the victim had made enquiries of her own and tracked down the offender on Facebook. She passed this information on to officers.

“Meanwhile officers also conducted other investigations of the offence, including viewing CCTV at the bar and identifying witnesses who we interviewed. Officers followed up the lead of the named person and other leads before arresting a woman on April 1.”