POLICE are investigating after two gay men were assaulted and robbed in Edinburgh city centre on Friday night.
An eye-witness who alerted the police to the incident outside John Lewis, on Leith Street, said they saw a group of men kicking and spitting on a man on the ground.
They claimed the men stole a bag before leaving the scene and heading towards the nearby Omni Centre.
The Edinburgh Evening News reported that the two victims are understood to be a married couple.
“It was unprovoked entirely - the gay men did not fight back, they only tried to defend themselves,” the eye-witness, who filmed the incident, told the newspaper.
“The boys were laughing, egging each other on and calling the victims p**fs. Another girl (at the scene) heard them say p**fs explicitly.”
Police Scotland are looking into the hate crime element.
A police spokesperson said: "We received a report of an assault and robbery against two men on Leith Street, Edinburgh, around 9.20pm on Friday, 30 July.
"Both men - aged 33 and 30 - weren't seriously injured. Enquiries are ongoing. Anyone with information should contact Police Scotland via 101 quoting incident number 3636 of 30 July."
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article