A Turkish holiday has turned into a nightmare for one British dad after a bar brawl left him seriously injured in hospital.
Derek Marsh, 41, required emergency surgery following a fight at the Manchester Bar in Marmaris, a city on the Turkish Riviera, leaving him alone in hospital.
His wife has now launched a campaign to have him returned to the UK as their daughter struggles with pregnancy complications back home in Lancashire.
Kelly Marsh is hoping to raise £7,000 via GoFundMe to have her husband flown back to the country.
She launched the fundraiser on October 8 following what she said was a gang attack carried out by six men.
Mrs Marsh said her husband was attacked after a member of his party had their card declined at the bar.
She told Lancashire Live a fight broke out away from CCTV following verbal abuse “used by both parties” after her father-in-law’s card was declined.
She added that she “stepped in to pay with my card” but panicked, only pressing three of the four numbers, and asked the bartender to reset.
The mum claimed that, after she entered the correct pin details on a new machine, the cashier was “calling me a f***ing English hussy”, and her “drink was tipped on him”.
She alleged that the group of six men dragged members of her party outside “in different directions not covered by CCTV”.
In the ensuing fight, her husband was left with serious facial injuries and rushed to hospital.
The mum is now seeking to return Mr Marsh home after he was declared unfit to fly, with their daughter placed on bed rest due to pregnancy complications.
The Manchester Bar refuted the claims in a lengthy post online, stating: “At no point was there any debate that the bill was not paid. We are fully satisfied that the bill was paid in full as the receipt they were given clearly states.”
“The same member of staff, then proceeds to say goodbye to the customers and fist-pumps all 3 men.
“In return, as they are leaving one of the men sticks the finger up in the staff member’s face, they are swearing and verbally assaulting this member of staff for no fault of his own. This was then followed by the female customer who throws her drink in the staff member’s face while walking out of the bar. We would like to emphasise that this is a form of assault!
“This is the same woman who has decided to go viral claiming this was an unprovoked attack. She then proceeded to physically attack our member of staff, alongside the male picking a chair up and attempting to hit another member of staff with it. Once the female customer exits the bar she too throws another chair back into the bar.
“We have nothing to hide or try to fabricate. If anyone would like to personally view the CCTV please do feel free to come along and ask.”
“The verbal abuse that these customers subjected to two of our staff members. There were a number of witnesses that heard the vulgar language used against our staff which was outright unacceptable, disgusting and uncalled for. As all our valued customers know we do our best to ensure the safety, protection and integrity of our customers while providing a fun and enjoyable place to enjoy your holiday. We treat all our customers with the utmost respect.
“The police are fully aware of the whole situation and have viewed the CCTV themselves, they have requested that we do not post the video online which is what they also requested from the customers who have made these accusations.”
Kelly responded, saying the bar was “trying to justify themselves”, adding: “They have not reported me to the police. The process is slow and we don’t have time on our side right now.
“We will always help anybody out and at this time we feel awful for asking but have no choice. We are begging for kind strangers’ help to get to our daughter’s side.”
