Warning - graphic image below

A dad says he feels “traumatised” after having nine of his teeth knocked out in an “unprovoked attack” outside a pub.

Tom Riva was hit with what is thought to have been a catapult outside The Chequers pub in Farningham High Street on Friday evening.

He told KentOnline: “At about 10pm, my twin brother and I went outside the front of the pub for a cigarette.

“A car came up the High Street, stopped at a pub across the road and it had its headlights pointed at me which made me turn around.

“I heard a bang which initially I thought was a gunshot but I think it was the elastic of the catapult and it hit me straight in the mouth.

“It shattered nine of my teeth and completely smashed up my lip which has left me with a severe lisp.”

He says the incident was “completely random and unprovoked” and fears it could have been fatal if he was hit elsewhere.

The 29-year-old explained: “If it hit me in the temple or the eye this could have easily killed me.”

He went to the emergency dentist yesterday where the remnants of his teeth were removed, and will have to return in a week once he has healed more.

He said: “The bottom line is that all my teeth are completely gone and I’ll have to have new teeth which is going to be a lengthy and very expensive procedure.

“It was horrible, it’s the worst thing that’s ever happened to me.

“I’ve got a seven-month-old boy and when I came out of the hospital he saw me completely covered in blood with my face all smashed up and he started crying. He can’t even look at me.

“Every time I go to the toilet I turn round and look at myself in the mirror and I’m constantly reminded of it.

“I feel traumatised. This feels more like an attempted murder than an assault.”

“It’s the worst thing that’s ever happened to me...”

A police spokesperson said: “Officers attended the High Street in Farningham along with the South East Coast Ambulance Service, where it was reported a suspected catapult had been used following a verbal altercation.

“A man sustained facial injuries and was taken to a local hospital. His condition was understood not to be serious. Inquiries into the assault are ongoing.”

Anyone with information regarding the incident should call police on 01622 604100 quoting 46/30380/25.