"The lad said to me 'it's your ear, it's on the floor' and I looked down and just saw it there."
Those were the words of a dad-of-three who was savagely attacked by a stranger inside a city centre takeaway earlier this year. Darren Melling, from Old Swan, had travelled back from London after watching Everton FC and enjoyed some drinks with his cousin.
Darren went into Hot Chillis takeaway on Berry Street just after midnight on August 27 where he helped a woman with a contactless payment. But before he could say another word a stranger came "nose to nose" with him. The next thing Darren knew he was face down on the floor.
