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Belfry New Year stabbings: Promoter hails 'hugely successful' party where six people were stabbed

A promoter of the club night at the golf resort wrote that the incident involved a 'mere fraction' of the people at the event

Ben Tufft
Friday 02 January 2015 12:46 EST
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The Belfry Hotel, near Sutton Coldfield
The Belfry Hotel, near Sutton Coldfield (Getty)

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A promoter of the event at the luxury Belfry golf resort where six people were stabbed on New Year’s Eve has been criticised after calling the night “hugely successful” in a statement on Facebook.

Three men are in hospital, two of whom are described as being in a stable but serious condition, and three men were arrested, and later bailed, after the Nude Nights event at the famous golf resort.

In a statement released on its Facebook page, Nude Nights criticised the "malicious" media reports around the event, saying: "There was an incident involving a mere fraction of those 1,500 people who attended resulting in us waking up to stories which have been entirely fabricated.

"Last night NUDE hosted a hugely successful event where over 1,500 people partied, socialised and saw in the new year in style making a great effort in their appearance."

“Our brand stands for sexy and sophisticated clubbing and has always been tailored for the more sensible and mature club goer,” the statement added.

The promoter was immediately criticised for undermining the seriousness of the event. Amelia Lucy wrote: “I've just read the statement and it really shows to me that you're not actually bothered that someone got stabbed!?

"Regardless of how many attended and what percentage the incident affected, it's still one too many! You don't sound remorseful in any way shape or form.”

Danni Harvey added: “I was there last night and this was the first time I attended one of your events and I must say I won't be going back. Grown men in suits acting like thugs.”

Some did defend the promoter and the evening, however: “Me and my friends attended Nude's event last night and were completely unaware of any incident.

"We had a brilliant night, loved every minute of it. Great place to see through to a New Year,” Lisa Rebecca Curtis wrote.

Police were called to the resort at 12.50am on New Year’s Day where they arrested a man, 26, from Birmingham for grievous bodily harm and another man, 22, on suspicion of assault.

While the police were dealing with these attacks, a further five people are believed to have been stabbed. Four individuals aged between 20 and 28 were taken to hospital. Another man, 20, was then arrested on suspicion of violent disorder.

Superintendent Adrian McGee of Warwickshire Police said: “This is the early stages of the investigation and at this time officers are still in the process of piecing together what has happened.

"This was a very challenging disorder for our officers to control on what was a very busy night for the force, and I am grateful for the work they conducted and bravery they showed last night in bringing order to this incident. "

The hotel’s marketing director, Gail Webb, told The Independent “We cannot make a full statement at this time, as the police inquiry is ongoing, but we are assisting the police in any way we can.”

The Belfry is well known for holding high profile golfing tournaments including the Ryder Cup and European Tour events.

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