Four teens charged over London bus attack on lesbians

London: British police on Thursday charged four teenage boys over an alleged homophobic attack on a lesbian couple who refused to kiss in front of them on a London night bus.

Melania Geymonat, 28, said she and her girlfriend Chris were robbed and left covered in blood after the incident in the trendy Camden Town area on May 30.

The four boys, aged between 15 and 17, were all charged with committing "an aggravated hate crime", London's Metropolitan Police said in a statement. Some of the group also face other charges including theft, handling stolen goods, and possession of cannabis, the force added. They are all set to appear in a London youth court on August 21.

Geymonat earlier told the BBC that the gang surrounded the couple while aboard the top deck of the bus. "They started saying really aggressive stuff, things about sexual positions, lesbians and claiming we could kiss so they could watch us," she said.

"They started throwing coins. The next thing I know Chris is in the middle of the bus and they are punching her. So I immediately went there by impulse and tried to pull her out of there and they started punching me. I was really bleeding." Both women were taken to hospital for treatment to facial injuries.