Woman attacked with slash hook on Limerick halting site

A YOUNG woman suffered an horrific ordeal after being attacked by a man with a slash hook at the Longpavement halting site near Moyross this week.

Lisa Marie Faulkner was attacked by a man, who had reversed into their site in the early hours of yesterday morning and caused extensive damage to a number of properties in an apparent “unprovoked attack”.

Ms Faulkner said she apprehended the culprit after he began smashing the windows and doors of a neighbouring caravan, belonging to her brother, at about 1am on Tuesday.

The attacker, who was accompanied by another man in a Volkswagen Polo, then turned his attention to Ms Faulkner, who shielded her face as he allegedly attempted to attack her and slash her across her face with the slash hook.

“I was roaring at him to stop, and when he had all the windows broken in my brother’s place, he ran over to me. He broke the lock on our door, so I kept trying to hold on to the door from the inside.

“I was holding on to the door to try to stop him coming in, but he kept hitting the door with the hook. He was stronger than me and got the door away from me and came in, and was taking swipes at me. After he hit my hand he took off,” she told the Limerick Leader.

She lives in the caravan with her father, three younger sisters and two brothers, who were in bed asleep at the time.

“There’s no barrier on the gate here [at the halting site], so we’ve no way of protecting ourselves,” she said.

She said the family have been living there all her life and haven’t experience anything like this before.

“I’m still in the height of shock about all this,” she added.

Her brother, his wife and their three children, all under the age of four, were in the neighbouring caravan, but were not assaulted in the attack.

She said she’s not aware of any motive for the attack, claiming the family “are quiet, peaceful people.”

She received medical treatment for her injuries yesterday.

Gardai are understood to be investigating the incident.