Wodonga Police release images of suspects

Detectives released CCTV images of two men-of-interest on Tuesday.

Police hope to identify the men and get justice for the homeless man, who claimed he had simply told the pub-goers not to litter.

The pair, suspected of the attack, caught a taxi from The Stump Hotel to High Street about 11pm.

The men had been drinking and left the vehicle to walk down a lane way, near Tristar Medical Group, toward the Carrier Arms Hotel.

A homeless man was sitting in a gravel car park which branched off to the left of the lane.

Wodonga Detective Tristan Purss said that's when things became violent.

“It appears the persons of interest had been drinking beforehand and and were en route to their next venue,” he said.

“Halfway to the Carriers, they had an encounter with a homeless man.

“A verbal confrontation commenced over a glass bottle being broken on the ground nearby.

“The same bottle can be seen in the footage we released.”

The victim was punched causing a fracture to his eye socket.

Detective Purss said initial reports suggested his eye dislodged from the socket and the man now suffers vision impairment.

The victim also suffered cuts and bruises to the rest of his body.

Police found drops of blood and the smashed bottle at the scene.

Detective Purss said the response was very disproportionate compared to what the homeless man had been trying to achieve.

“He was only trying to get the men to refrain from littering, so their reaction was pretty appalling,” he said.

“We are treating this seriously and trying to find the offenders to get closure for the victim.

“Identifying the offenders is the most important thing in any investigation.

“If any member of the public knows these men, please notify us as soon as possible.”

It is predicted the offenders are aged roughly in their late 30s to early 40s.

Anyone with information should contact Wodonga Police on (02) 6049 2600 or Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.