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You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2016/sep/16/muggim-victim-alan-barnes-offers-small-donation-fundraiser-katie-cutler
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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
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| Mugging victim offers to give £10 to debt-stricken woman who helped him | Mugging victim offers to give £10 to debt-stricken woman who helped him |
| (about 3 hours later) | |
| Mugging victim Alan Barnes has said he would contribute about £10 towards paying off the debts of a woman who helped raise more than £330,000 for him. | |
| Barnes, 68, who is disabled and 4ft 6in, was attacked outside his home in Gateshead in January 2015, breaking his collarbone. | Barnes, 68, who is disabled and 4ft 6in, was attacked outside his home in Gateshead in January 2015, breaking his collarbone. |
| Following the assault, Katie Cutler, a beautician, set up an online fundraising page, which attracted donations from across the world. The eventual sum raised enabled Barnes to buy a new house. | Following the assault, Katie Cutler, a beautician, set up an online fundraising page, which attracted donations from across the world. The eventual sum raised enabled Barnes to buy a new house. |
| But Cutler is facing the prospect of bailiffs turning up at her house after she was handed a bill of almost £7,000 by a PR company. | But Cutler is facing the prospect of bailiffs turning up at her house after she was handed a bill of almost £7,000 by a PR company. |
| Claire Barber PR is demanding the money, which it says was for four months’ work to help raise Cutler’s profile, and has taken the case to a small claims court. | Claire Barber PR is demanding the money, which it says was for four months’ work to help raise Cutler’s profile, and has taken the case to a small claims court. |
| Barnes, a pensioner, said he would contribute a “small amount ... £10 or something,” when asked about Cutler’s plight. | Barnes, a pensioner, said he would contribute a “small amount ... £10 or something,” when asked about Cutler’s plight. |
| He told the Chronicle newspaper that he believes a fund should be set up for Cutler and he would be “quite happy to put just a small donation in”. | He told the Chronicle newspaper that he believes a fund should be set up for Cutler and he would be “quite happy to put just a small donation in”. |
| “It’s easy for people to say ‘he’s got a lot of money, cough up,’ but you’ve got to look into all the alternatives,” he said. | “It’s easy for people to say ‘he’s got a lot of money, cough up,’ but you’ve got to look into all the alternatives,” he said. |
| “It might seem hard, but if I start handing it out, other people might ask for money. It was given to me on the understanding that I use it for myself.” | “It might seem hard, but if I start handing it out, other people might ask for money. It was given to me on the understanding that I use it for myself.” |
| Cutler defended Barnes’s offer telling the Mirror: “I do not think Alan should have to pay anything. Like me, he did not sign anything. | Cutler defended Barnes’s offer telling the Mirror: “I do not think Alan should have to pay anything. Like me, he did not sign anything. |
| “A lot of people think he should have paid that bill because things in that relate to him. | “A lot of people think he should have paid that bill because things in that relate to him. |
| If you go out for a meal, the richest person does not have to foot the bill. I feel strongly about this. | If you go out for a meal, the richest person does not have to foot the bill. I feel strongly about this. |
| “The money raised was Alan’s and that money was for him - it should stay with him. He can do what he wants with it.” | “The money raised was Alan’s and that money was for him - it should stay with him. He can do what he wants with it.” |
| Claire Barber, the chief executive of Claire Barber PR, said she had “no choice but to go to the small claims court” because she was unable to carry the debt. | Claire Barber, the chief executive of Claire Barber PR, said she had “no choice but to go to the small claims court” because she was unable to carry the debt. |
| Following the mugging, Barnes said he would move to the Shetland Islands, after getting a “call from God”, and put his house in Gateshead up for sale. But he eventually decided against this and is looking for another home in the town. | Following the mugging, Barnes said he would move to the Shetland Islands, after getting a “call from God”, and put his house in Gateshead up for sale. But he eventually decided against this and is looking for another home in the town. |
| Richard Gatiss, who attacked Barnes, was sentenced to four years in prison at Newcastle crown court in April 2015, having previously admitted assault with intent to rob. | Richard Gatiss, who attacked Barnes, was sentenced to four years in prison at Newcastle crown court in April 2015, having previously admitted assault with intent to rob. |