A BRIT traveller who allegedly left a hotel employee blind in one eye yelled “I’m a gangster” before launching the brutal knife attack.

Aaron Michel, 35, is facing 12 years in prison for allegedly stabbing the receptionist during a drunken rampage on Menjangan Island in May.

Aaron Michel, 35, appeared in court this week

CCTV showed Michel allegedly stabbing the hotel staff member in one swift motion

The suspect was turned down when he demanded staff to book him a room at the Indonesian hotel, a court heard this week.

He is said to have yelled at receptionist Ida Santika before the alleged attack: “I’m a gangster, and I want to party.”

Shocking CCTV footage showed him lashing out at the hotel worker who was left blind in one eye and with serious hand injuries.

Michel, from London, was arrested shortly after in a nearby town as he attempted to flee the island.

Michel after his arrest earlier this year

Hotel receptionist Ida Santika was allegedly stabbed in the eye

He appeared in Singaraja regional court this week charged with possessing a sharp weapon and assault causing serious injury.

Prosecutor Kadek Adi Pramarta requested that the judge jail him for 12 years.

He said: “The defendant’s actions caused the victim to suffer permanent blindness in his left eye, and he cannot move two of his fingers.”

Michel was behaving aggressively when he arrived at the hotel on the night of May 5 this year, the court heard.

Michel has been accused of stabbing the receptionist while he was drunk

The Brit is in court in Bali

Santika said: “I received a phone call from a security guard who said there was a guest who was going to view a room.

“The security guard said the guest was under the influence of alcohol.”

He added: “I went to meet him in the car park. I saw the defendant carrying three bottles of alcohol.

“I then asked, ‘Can I help you?’ He replied, ‘I’m a gangster, and I want to party.’

“He was so drunk that I refused to allow him access to view the room.”

Santika said he was then attacked “within seconds”.

The alleged victim said: “I then felt blood coming from my left eye and left hand. The defendant then got into his car and fled.

“I have not yet been able to forgive him.”

The case has been adjourned until next week.

With more than six million international visitors annually, Bali has become a popular destination for Brits.

But the influx of millions of “cashed- up” holidaymakers has transformed the once tranquil holiday destination into a crime hotspot.

The island has rapidly emerged as a honeypot for international drug traffickers and street violence and robbery is on the rise.

Source: https://www.the-sun.com/news/16990024/brit-gangster-knife-attack-bali-hotel-worker-blind/