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A man who had a pint of sulfuric acid thrown in his face told Sky News that he is “ill” after learning that his attacker was transferred to an open prison, less than six years after the assault occurred.
Andreas Christopheros was left blind in one eye and scarred for life after the attack on his home in Truro, Cornwall, in December 2014.
David Phillips had driven 300 miles from Sussex to carry out a revenge attack on someone who he believed had assaulted a member of his family, but it was a case of mistaken identity.
Andreas Christopheros got a pint of sulfuric acid thrown in his face
Christopheros photographed before the attack
Phillips received a life sentence with a minimum period of eight years in October 2015, but the life sentence was overturned a year later.
Instead, judges handed down a 16-year sentence and said he would be eligible for parole after serving eight.
David Phillips pleaded guilty to the attack. Photo: Devon and Cornwall Police
Christopheros told Sky News that he feels defrauded by the UK justice system after learning that Phillips has been transferred to an open prison and is requesting release by day.
“Sick is probably the correct term,” he said.
“It became very obvious that in the UK, you can throw a pint of sulfuric acid in someone’s face, ruin their life, cost them physically, emotionally and mentally, cost the state hundreds of thousands, if not millions, in hospital fees and Police investigation, and we only spent five and a half years behind bars, it just doesn’t add up.
“How I can [Phillips] to be out? Yes, you are in an open prison, but you can go out and enjoy the sun, go out and spend time with your family.
“You can even go out and get a job and start working again, while I’m still picking up the pieces of what you did to me.”
Mr. Christopheros was blind in one eye and has scars for life
Describing the attack on him, Christopheros said that he was working from home when he heard a knock on his door.
After opening the door, a pint of concentrated sulfuric acid was thrown at his face, and his attacker was heard saying, “This is for you, buddy.”
Mr. Christopheros said: “He was standing two steps from my door, so I threw him upright so that the acid would come up, hit the ceiling on top of me and fall down my back.
“My T-shirt disintegrated from top to bottom and hung from my arms like a vest. That was the moment I knew it was acid.”
Christopheros said he is still dealing with the impact of the attack on his life.
Christopheros said that “every aspect” of his life has been affected by the attack.
“There is not one aspect that has not been affected, not even sleeping,” he added.
“I’m not the person I was before the attack.
“In a way, the old me died when [Phillips] He did what he did to me, and I had to reinvent myself into something that worked for my injuries.
Christopheros says he is not the same person since the attack
“I can’t play with my son the way I want to. I can’t play sports anymore.”
“I would like to make the most of life, even if I am disabled the way I am because of what David Phillips did to me.
“I still get up and keep doing what I can do.
“It’s not what I want to do, but it’s something. So life is good … it’s the best it can be, in a bad situation.”
Christopheros says he wants to ‘make the most of’ his life
A spokesman for the Justice Ministry said: “Acid attacks devastate lives and leave victims emotionally and physically scarred and our thoughts remain with Mr. Christopheros.
“Since this heinous case, we have made it a crime to carry these substances in public, banning their sale to those under 18 years of age, and imposing minimum prison sentences to ensure that cowards who use acids as weapons face the full force of the law. “
