Danielle (middle) got to spend time with her sisters Lauren (left) and Stacey (right) on Christmas Day.PIC BBC
THE family of an assault victim who has to use a wheelchair as the result of an attack in County Derry five months ago has spoken out about the attack.
Danielle Allen, originally from Aghanloo outside Limavady, was in left in a coma after the attack in Glenmore Gardens in the town on 17 July.
The 27-year-old was found with serious bleeding to the brain, broken ribs, a fractured arm and multiple burns.
Ms Allen was at Musgrave Park for rehabilitation but is now being cared for at Spruce House in Derry.
She requires 24-hour care.
Danielle’s mother, Collette McLaughlin, will speak on BBC Radio Foyle tomorrow (Tuesday) at 8am about the attack.
She told reporter Dean McLaughlin: “I saw my daughter in such a state I thought I lost her. Danielle is not the girl I gave birth to anymore. It’s been a total nightmare.
“She was on a life-support machine for a long time in the Royal Victoria Hospital and she has been left with severe brain injuries. She’s in a wheelchair and can only use one arm.”
To date, the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) has arrested one man on suspicion of serious offences related to the attack.
The 23-year-old was detained on 18 July and was later released on police bail pending further inquiries.
The PSNI’s area commander for Limavady, Ch Insp Alan Hutton, said: “We sympathise with Danielle and her family on the undoubted trauma that they have experienced.
“We can only begin to imagine what the last six months have meant to them.
He added: “Our determination to find out what happened to Danielle has not diminished.
“Since July, extensive enquiries have continued and a number of interviews have been carried out.”
The commander said they had employed “a wide range of resources” to assist in the investigation, including experts from within the PSNI as well as from outside Northern Ireland.
He said officers had also been in contact with the McLaughlin family to update them on the investigation.
You can hear a full interview with Danielle’s mother and sister Stacey on BBC Radio Foyle/Ulster from 08:00 GMT on Tuesday 30 December.
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