A MAN who claims he was repeatedly kicked and punched by vicious thugs shouting “Muslim and a terrorist” believes the pair who attacked him have got away with it because the police took six days to take a statement.

Braham Aissaoui, 42, was walking home at around 6pm when he was pounced upon by two men at the top of the steps which lead off St Margaret’s Street, close to Bradford on Avon town centre.

One of the men punched the self-employed handyman in the face, and after he fell to the ground they both began to batter him. He suffered bruising to his face and body, but did not need hospital treatment.

Mr Aissaoui believes the assault was racially aggravated and now fears for his safety.

“I was really shaken up. It came completely out of the blue,” he said.

“When they shouted that I was a Muslim and a terrorist, lots of witnesses fled the scene. A car then nearly ran me over because I fell onto the road as I was punched.

“My partner has come over from Trowbridge to stay with me for a few weeks in case it happens again. I don’t feel safe walking around town.”

The attack happened on October 22, and Mr Aissaoui is disgusted that he had to wait until last Friday for the police to visit his home and take his statement.

He added: “I feel like I have been let down badly by the police. There has been no victim support and they didn’t take any evidence when it happened.

“I’m angry, frustrated and disappointed at both the fact I was attacked in daylight and the fact the police don’t seem to have taken it seriously enough. I worry that the attackers are still out there and might do it again to someone else.”

A spokesman for Wiltshire Police said this week: “We are investigating this as a potential hate crime incident. We attended the scene and spoke directly with the victim and arrangements were made to obtain a statement and progress the enquiry.

“We take all reports of violence very seriously and it is unfortunate that in this case that there was a delay due to other immediate operational commitments.”

The spokesman could not say what those commitments were. The attack happened on the night of Trowbridge Carnival procession.

Bradford on Avon mayor Alison Craddock was shocked to learn of the attack, adding: “Bradford on Avon is a peaceful town and I am horrified.

“It’s important to point out that this does not reflect the way our town feels about ethnic minorities and we hope it is just a rare occurrence as we don’t see a lot of crime here, especially of this manner.”

Resident Joceline Bury, who lives close to where Mr Aissaoui was attacked, said: “We used to have a great police presence in the town but that’s not the case any more."