Arthur Collins loses appeal against Dalston acid attack sentence - BBC News
Arthur Collins threw the corrosive substance at revellers at the East London nightclub in April 2017.
Arthur Collins had denied knowing the substance he threw was acid

A man who threw acid across a packed London nightclub has lost an appeal against his 20-year jail sentence.

Arthur Collins, the ex-boyfriend of reality TV star Ferne McCann, injured 22 people when he threw a corrosive substance in Mangle E8 in April 2017.

The 25-year-old admitted throwing the liquid at the Dalston club but claimed he believed it was a date rape drug.

In December, Collins, of Broxbourne, Hertfordshire, was jailed for 20 years at Wood Green Crown Court.

Three judges at the Court of Appeal in London rejected his bid for a sentence reduction at a hearing on Wednesday.

This video can not be played To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. CCTV of the acid attack in London club

Collins was found guilty of five counts of GBH with intent and nine counts of ABH.

In January, he was jailed for another eight months for using a smuggled mobile phone to call Ms McCann from his prison cell.

Rejecting the appeal, Lord Justice Simon said: "We accept that this was a severe sentence, but these were exceptionally serious offences, and the severe sentence was fully justified."

Of the 22 people injured as a result of the attack, 16 suffered serious burns.

One man suffered third-degree chemical burns to the left side of the face and required a skin graft. Others had eye injuries.

Collins had six previous convictions including using threatening words, possession of cocaine, drink-driving and assault.