THE victim of a savage revenge attack by a gang of men who were wrongly told he was a rapist, has described how his life has been wrecked.

Gary Ramsden, 43, has been left with partial sight in one eye, following the vicious assault, and has had to give up his job as a bus driver.

Mr Ramsden was repeatedly attacked after he was locked in a house by a woman who claimed he had raped her. Bradford Crown Court heard last week that the allegation had been false and "entirely without foundation".

The court heard she gave the house key to the defendants - 40-year-old Brian Siddle and Joshua Cousins, 18 - who went there with a third man and punched, kicked and stamped on him. He was further attacked twice in the street after fleeing the house, in Laisterdyke, Bradford.

Siddle, of Blucher Street, Laisterdyke, who led the attacks, was jailed for eight years. Cousins, 18, of Fernville Drive, Tyersal, who was immature and vulnerable, was given three years youth custody. The third attacker has not been identified.

Mr Ramsden, of Barnsley, suffered fractures to his cheek and jaw and had to have two metal plates inserted and 30 stitches to his mouth and around his eye. He was detained in hospital for three days. The court heard he had blurred vision in one eye after the assault, last October.

Speaking after the case, Mr Ramsden told the Telegraph & Argus that he had been left with partial sight in the eye and was still suffering pain from his injuries nearly a year later.

He said: "I have been scarred for life, both physically and emotionally. My jaw was shattered in five places. I am still having treatment for my injuries and have to take painkillers.

"I still have flashbacks and I am afraid to go out and walk down the street. I now have partial sight in one eye and I can't work as a bus driver anymore. I have lost my career through this attack."

Mr Ramsden said his ordeal had been made worse by being arrested over the allegation of rape.

"It was a torture to be accused of that. The charges were dropped, but it's an awful thing to be accused of. The allegation she made led to me being attacked."

Mr Ramsden said he was petrified when he was attacked for the third time and feared for his life.

"I was shouting for help. If the police hadn't come when they did, I would have been dead."

He said he was pleased with the eight-year sentence handed out to Siddle, but said he should serve the full tariff.

"If he was locked up for eight years, that would be fine. But the criminal justice system means that he will only serve four. I don't think that's enough for the pain caused to me and the pain I am still going through.

"As a victim of crime, I would like to see the law changed so that all people convicted serve the full sentence."