Part of a man's ear was bitten off when he went to help a woman who was being attacked.

Her boyfriend grabbed him in a bear hug and gnawed off the top third of his ear and then spat it out on to the road.

Nathan Hunt, 22, a driver for a security firm, was taken to the Royal Sussex County Hospital, Brighton, and later transferred to a specialist unit at the Queen Victoria Hospital, East Grinstead.

Mr Hunt, from Shoreham, underwent emergency surgery but doctors could not re-attach the piece of ear.

He is due for more surgery to clean the wound on Thursday when plastic surgeons will decide if they can rebuild the ear.

The attack happened at 3am yesterday morning as Mr Hunt was walking home with friends.

He turned from Russell Road, Brighton, into West Street and was outside the Quality Inn hotel when he saw the woman being attacked.

He went to help but the woman's boyfriend lunged at him.

The attacker then ran away and police today were trying to trace him.

The man is 28, muscular and wore a grey cardigan which he left at the scene.