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A picturesque Gloucestershire village has been rocked by spate of acid attacks which narrowly missed a pet cat and caused six vehicles to be written off.

Locals in St Briavels are so concerned that that the violence could escalate to involve attacks on people that they have raised £2,000 reward to help catch those responsible.

Civic leaders say six vehicles have been targeted within the last 18 months by what appears to be a small group of masked attackers who have caused tens of thousands of pounds of damage to five cars and a motorhome in the Forest of Dean village.

Householders say they have passed on CCTV images showing a middle-aged woman wearing a devil mask and black wig and a bald man pouring acid on one car and another vehicle being attacked by a younger man with hoodie and scarf over his face.

But despite the footage captured on home security cameras and the disguise being found discarded, police have been unable to catch those responsible.

Semi-retired, music teacher John Hurley, 73, is the latest victim in the series of attacks and his Renault Megane Scenic was so badly damaged that it will probably be written off.

The gel-like acid, which stripped the paint on virtually every panel back to bare metal, was so strong it started to melt the plastic wipers and headlamps, as well as a plastic spatula being used to scrape it off.

Mr Hurley says it does not bear thinking about what would have happened if he had disturbed the vandals in the drive of his home after dark.

“Luckily I was aware of the previous attacks so as soon as I saw it it I knew straight away what it was," said Mr Hurley.

“If I hadn’t known and touched it, it would have been disastrous. I teach music and the acid would have damaged my fingers.

“It’s devastating to think that there are people in our community who could do such a thing.”

Another victim who declined to be named, said “Our home security cameras showed at least two people involved in the attack on our vehicle and property.

"The pair pulled up in a vehicle. One was a stout bald middle aged man wearing glasses, accompanied by a tallish middle aged woman who was wearing a devil's mask, black curly wig, a poncho and boots with a distinctive thick white sole, who proceeded to throw acid all over our black Freelander.

"A wig and devil’s mask matching the security footage were later recovered along with an acid bottle cap, which were handed to the police scenes of crime investigators”.

The householder who filmed the younger attacker said: " It would appear these are copy-cat attacks carried out by a small group of people.

"My wife or I could have easily disturbed them during the attack and been seriously injured or maimed for life”.

Parish councillor Andrew Clarke says other members of the community have also received threatening letters, pornographic material posted though letterboxes or catflaps in the middle of the night.

“Let’s not forget this latest attack was on a 73-year-old, music teacher who was actually shaking like a leaf afterwards,” he said, adding that the chemical appears to be even stronger than commercial paint stripper Nitromors.

“John is a lovely, inoffensive man who does a lot for of voluntary work in the local the community. They need to catch those responsible before it escalates.

“Can you imagine if somebody caught the perpetrators in the act? They are likely to throw the acid over them and run.

“This stuff is absolutely lethal and takes no prisoners. Somebody could get really hurt if the police do not catch those responsible soon."

Mr Clarke says the community is beginning to rally around the victims and contributed to a substantial reward to help catch those responsible.

Parish and district councillor Chris McFarling said: “The parish council condemns these acts of violence and we hope the police will bring the perpetrators to justice.”

Acid attacks on people have doubled since 2012 and sentencing guidelines have been changed so it is now listed as a weapon, meaning any adult caught carrying acid twice or threatening to use it should receive a mandatory six-month prison sentence.

A Gloucesteshire Police spokesman said: “On Friday March 22 we received a report of criminal damage in the St Briavels area where unknown offenders had poured acid over a car.

“The car, a Renault Megane Scenic, was extensively damaged during the incident, which happened between 6pm on Thursday March 21 and 10.25am the following day.

“Anyone with information is asked to contact Gloucestershire Constabulary on 101 quoting incident 212 of March 22.”