Bulgaria

Tuesday, September, 29, 2009

 

I feared bouncer would leave me brain-damaged

A SCOTS grandad told yesterday how he feared he would be left brain-damaged when he was beaten to a pulp by a thug security guard in a Bulgarian hotel lobby

Tourist Ronnie McDonald, 53, was battered senseless by the bouncer as he tried to help an elderly guest who had fallen ill.

And when horrified wife Joan, 50, stepped in, the brute snarled: "You are nothing but English w*****s".

Ronnie, of Dalry, Ayrshire was left with a fractured nose, bruised ribs, two black eyes and bootprints on his back after the attack at the Sunny Palace Superior Hotel in the resort of Sunny Beach Last night he said: "This guy was laying into me so violently I thought I was going to be left dead or brain-damaged - it was awful.

 

"The pictures are like something out of a horror movie - my face was a total mess."

Chemical engineer Ronnie was on the second night of his holiday with Joan when the vicious attack took place. He said: "A man in our company took unwell and couldn't catch a breath so I took him outside and began rubbing his back.

"The guard, who was standing in reception, started walking towards us laughing. I said to him 'What's the problem?' - next thing I knew he had hooked me. I landed on the floor and he was booting me I don't know how many times. He had big heavy boots and he was really laying in.

"Joan, who was hysterical, ran up and asked why he attacked me - and he said because 'you are nothing but English w*****s'. He then ran outside and was giving me the come-on for another fight but I ignored him."

Police caught the unnamed guard and fined him 100 leva - just £47. The hotel paid for Ronnie's new glasses but refused to cough up any more compensation.

His holiday was booked with Med Holidays, through Bookable Holidays, who yesterday promised to investigate.

Last week, an Aberdeen couple told how they were too scared to leave their hotel room after they were mugged in the same resort. Helen Thomas, 69, was left with a broken arm and bruising while husband Ivor, 71, was punched in the face.

Earlier this month, we told how terrified Alan Cantwell, 65, and wife Sylvia, 63, of Dundee, bought guns to protect themselves after being battered and robbed in Bulgaria.