Arthur Collins in court over London nightclub 'acid attack'
- Published
The former boyfriend of The Only Way Is Essex star Ferne McCann has appeared in court charged with 15 offences following an alleged acid attack.
Arthur Collins, 24, is accused of 14 counts of grievous bodily harm with intent and one of throwing corrosive fluid on a person.
Twenty people were hurt - including two each blinded in one eye - when they were doused with a substance at the Mangle E8 club in Hackney on 17 April.
A man aged 21 has also been charged.
Andre Phoenix, of Clyde Road, Tottenham, faces seven counts of causing grievous bodily harm.
Mr Collins, from Hertfordshire, was arrested at an address in Rushden, Northamptonshire, on Saturday.
The 24-year-old, who was walking on crutches, appeared at Thames Magistrates' Court in London with Mr Phoenix where they were both remanded in custody.
Prosecutors also told the court there was still a third unidentified suspect at large.
In a statement, Ms McCann's spokeswoman announced the reality TV star was pregnant but said the couple had split up.
"Accordingly she does not wish to discuss the pregnancy further, given the early stage it is at," she said.
She also said Ms McCann's thoughts were with the "victims of the horrific attack".
The Metropolitan Police said a man and a 22-year-old woman both lost their sight in one eye after the incident. Other people were treated for severe burns.
The substance used has not yet been confirmed but samples retrieved from the scene have been sent for analysis.
The man blinded in one eye and another victim, a 29-year-old man, were transferred to a specialist burns hospital in Essex and have since been discharged.
A 24-year-old old man arrested in north London over the attack on Friday has since been released.
