THESE are the horrific injuries suffered by York tattooist Steven Hunter in a shocking robbery in his home.

The 51-year-old, who works at the Two Ronnies Tattoo Studio in Clarence Street, had both ears mutilated and was slashed across the face by three knife-wielding robbers.

In scenes reminiscent of the ultra-violent Quentin Tarantino film, Reservoir Dogs, he was tortured for more than 30 minutes while tied to a chair.

The robbers - who wore "joke" masks - escaped with a five-figure sum and left Mr Hunter for dead. He managed to raise the alarm ten hours later.

Surgeons have been unable to sew back the severed parts of his ears, and he will be disfigured for life.

Police said Mr Hunter had just returned from a night out whenthe three men burst in to his semi-detached home.

It is thought they may have been tipped off that the self-employed tattooist had a substantial amount of cash in his home.

Ken Lockwood, who recently closed his newsagents on the corner of Gillygate, said Mr Hunter was a regular customer.

"I think it's terrible what happened to him," he said.

"He is a pretty genuine person."

Detective Inspector Mark Shreeves, the officer leading the investigation, said it was the worst attack he had seen in 22 years of policing.

"What these men have done is utterly barbaric," he said. "I haven't seen this level of violence in some murders. For this degree of violence to be used in a robbery, it really is staggering.

"What makes it more callous is they more or less left him for dead."

The attack happened on Saturday, February 28, at Mr Hunter's home off Beverley High Road, Hull.

Anyone with information should call 01482 597500.

Updated: 16:00 Monday, March 08, 2004