Published: Wednesday, 1st April, 2009 12:30pm

Police hunt after stabbings

by Angela Murphy

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COPS are hunting a group of thugs who stabbed a man after he refused to give them a cigarette.

The 29-year-old man, thought to be from Lithuania, was attacked by a gang in Johnstone as he was walking home.

Seven youths, aged around 17 years old, approached the man while he was walking along the cycle track near to Morrison"s supermarket in Napier Street.

When he refused to give them a cigarette, the teenagers heard his accent and told him to "get back to Poland".

An eight-inch blade was then used to stab the innocent man, causing deep wounds to his right thigh and hand.

Miraculously, the blood-soaked victim managed to make his way back to his sister"s house in Cowal Drive, Linwood after the attack at around 8.40pm on Sunday night.

When he arrived at the house, he was rushed to the RAH where 10 stiches were needed to sew up the wound.

Nothing was stolen from the victim, which has led to speculation that it was a racially-aggravated assault.

This shocking attack was the end of a weekend of violence which saw a young man being stabbed in Renfrew on Friday night.

A 23-year-old male was taken to the RAH in Paisley after a brutal stab attack at around 7pm in Bell Street.

He suffered a single stab wound to his back and has now been described by police as "stable".

Police are treating both incidents as serious assaults and are now appealing to anyone with information to come forward and help with their inquiries.

If you know anything about either attack, please phone Johnstone CID on 01505 404000 or the Crimestoppers number on 0800 551111 where anonymity can be guaranteed.