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A vile attacker posed for pictures with the tip of a 31-year-old mother’s finger in her mouth after biting it off in a nightclub toilets.
Libby Armstrong, 22, posted pictures of herself on Snapchat, after running off with the top of Toni Lough’s finger following an ‘unprovoked’ attack.
Police later arrested the attacker but were unable to get Ms Lough’s finger back in time for it to be reattached.
Armstrong has now been jailed for four years, after admitting wounding with intent at Newcastle Crown Court, in a sentence described as a ‘disgrace’ by Ms Lough.
Ms Lough was forced to leave her job as a sandwich maker due to the injuries she suffered outside Manhattans nightclub in Wallsend, North Tyneside, in September last year.
Libby Armstrong, 22, was jailed for four years after admitting wounding with intent
The vile attacker posted pictures of herself on Snapchat with the fingertip in her mouth
The victim saw her attackers photos online after being shown the pictures by a friend
Toni Lough, 31, was forced to leave her job due to her injuries from the unprovoked attack
The 31-year-old mother, from Newcastle, was also forced to leave her home, due to threats from her attacker, and now suffers from PTSD.
‘Libby launched a completely unprovoked attack in the loos,’ Lough said. ‘She then followed me outside and clamped her teeth down on my finger as I yelled for her to stop.
‘I felt a crunch and could feel her biting through the bone. It was agony. She ripped my finger off then ran away with it in her mouth.’
‘I looked down to see the top of my ring-finger missing and I was bleeding out onto the street.
‘I was in so much pain and my hand had to be put on ice while a crowd of emergency workers desperately searched for the missing digit but they couldn’t find it.’
Libby Armstrong, 22, pictured outside court. She was jailed after biting off her victim’s finger following an unprovoked assault outside a nightclub
Medics were unable to reattach the mother’s fingertip after the nightclub attack
After running away with the Ms Lough’s finger, Libby posed for a picture with it in her mouth and posted it on Snapchat.
Ms Lough was horrified when a friend sent her the vile Snapchat photo after seeing it online.
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‘My friend saw it online and send it to me asking if it was mine,’ Ms Lough said. I instantly knew it was my finger by the shape and nail. It was awful.’
The brutal incident saw Ms Lough hospitalised for three days, during which time she underwent surgery on her finger to help it heal.
Unfortunately, it could not be re-attached as police were unable to get it back from her sick attacker in time.
Ms Lough was left with a bruise on her hip, cuts to her knees, and PTSD and was forced to leave her job as a sandwich maker due to her injuries.
Toni Lough (pictured) was forced to leave her job because of her injuries and now suffers from PTSD
Toni Lough said she had to stop working because of the injuries caused by Armstrong (pictured)
The mother spent three days in hospital following the attack in Wallsend, North Tynside
She also had to move out of her home after Libby threatened to set fire to her house in revenge after she reported her to the police.
Ms Lough added: ‘I don’t leave my house much now. I had to stay at my mam’s home for six weeks after the incident as the police had found evidence of Libby threatening to burn down my home.
‘They had to fit extra smoke alarms and put a lock on the letterbox to stop her from setting the place alight.
‘I eventually had to move house because of the ordeal. My finger is still healing and I have to wear gloves around the house as it is sensitive to the cold.
‘The injury is on my ring-finger so if I was to ever get engaged or married I couldn’t bear to look at it. It is a constant reminder of what happened.’
Armstrong, of Shearwater Close, Newcastle, admitted wounding with intent at Newcastle Crown Court.
Armstrong was on a suspended sentence for assault on emergency workers at the time of her nightclub attack and has a previous conviction for carrying a hammer.
Mr Recorder David Brooke KC sentenced Armstrong to four years behind bars for the attack and a further 12 weeks for breach of the suspended sentence at Newcastle Crown Court.
Ms Lough, however, slammed the sentence as too lenient, as she called the four-year prison term given to her attacker a ‘disgrace’.
She said: ‘Four years is a disgrace. She has a record of being violent and she should have been locked up for longer.
‘She is a vulture, she kept my finger as a sick trophy after violently attacking me.’
Matthew Purves, defending, said Armstrong accepts her behaviour was ‘dreadful’ and recognises the lasting consequences of it.
Mr Purves added: ‘She expresses through me genuine remorse and apologises for the behaviour and the consequences the complainant is continuing to suffer and deal with.’
