THIS is the young dad scarred for life by a gang of thugs.

Two months on from the terrifying attack, when Reece Johnson had his face slashed in front of his five-year-old son, the 23-year-old is slowly putting his life back together.

But he has been left depressed by the attack and suffers from nightmares.

He has had the 68 stitches removed from the wound but it has left a six-inch scar.

Mr Johnson admitted: “Every time I look in the mirror, I remember the attack.”

He was confronted at night by a 20-strong gang as he walked past the entrance to Bobby Heywood Park, in Great Lever, with his son, Tyrel, and a friend, on May 1.

But no one has been arrested for the offence, and the father-of-three says he will never move on until someone is put behind bars for the vicious attack.

He added: “I could have been killed. My kids could’ve been left without a dad.

“I feel lucky to be alive.”

He had been to Blackpool for the day with friends and was taking his son back to their Great Lever home when the incident happened.

The trio had walked towards the gang, who were outside the park’s Lever Street entrance.

A row then broke out and Mr Johnson was attacked while his terrified son clung to the leg of his father’s friend.

The young dad was slashed across the face by what is thought to be a razor blade.

Medical staff told Mr Johnson that if the blade had continued another few millimetres then it would have cut his jugular vein and he could have died.

Since the attack, Mr Johnson has not returned to his house in Great Lever. He is now living in Darcy Lever.

He said he feels much safer there but the attack is never far from his thoughts and he has been suffering from depression and occasional nightmares.

Det Insp Andy Meeks, of Bolton CID, said: “We are continuing to investigate this nasty assault, which left a young man badly injured.

“Knife Crime is something we take very seriously and we are determined to catch the people responsible. We still believe there were a number of people in the park that night who may have seen something but have not come forward to speak to us.

“If anyone does have any information that could help us find the offenders, please don’t hesitate to get in touch.”

Anyone with information should call police on 0161 856 5740 or Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.

steven.thompson @theboltonnews.co.uk