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Gay Couple Beaten, Kicked While Leaving Corner Store in Britain

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Jamie Edwards and Damian Hampton say a group of teenagers called them antigay slurs before assaulting them. Police are now investigating.

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A gay couple was beaten by a group of teenagers while leaving a corner store this week in Southampton in southern England.

According to The Daily Echo, a Southampton-based regional newspaper covering the county of Hampshire, Jamie Edwards, 33, and Damian Hampton, 26, were leaving the local One Stop shop when three teenagers began to shout homophobic slurs at them. When the couple tried to walk away, they say the assailants attacked them from behind and they were "punched to the floor and kicked in the head" before getting "booted in the face."

"It happened so fast," Edwards told the outlet. "Within seconds they had caught up and punched Damian in the face. They ripped my clothes and wouldn't stop kicking us while we were on the ground. We had never even seen or spoke to them before, it was a totally unprovoked and unexpected attack."

"I had to watch my boyfriend being booted on the floor and there was absolutely nothing I could do about it," he added of the assault, which reportedly lasted for several minutes.

The couple, who reside in Sholing (the eastern side of Southampton), reportedly received heavy bruising on their arms, legs, and ribs, as well as cuts to their hands.

Furthermore, Edwards tells The Daily Echo he had to take a few days off from his "painting and decorating" job while he recovers, which is making him lose out on wages.

The Hampshire Police Department confirmed that the incident is being treated as a hate crime and is calling for witnesses or anyone with information about the attack to call police with the reference number 44190436605.

As for Edwards and Hampton, they say they "refuse to ever walk to that shop again" following the incident and are continuing to recover from their injuries.

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