A young man was found sitting on a wall with his clothes saturated in blood after suffering a deep knife wound in a late-night attack.

A second victim claimed he had to jump into the sea to escape from a machete-wielding thug in a separate attack nearby less than an hour earlier, Police say.

Officers are investigating whether the two incidents are linked.

The knife wound victim, a 21-year-old Pembroke man, underwent surgery to his left forearm at King Edward VII Memorial Hospital yesterday. He remained at the hospital last night, when his condition was described as non life-threatening.

Police say he was discovered on the wall, near the Point Mart variety store, in St. John's Road, Pembroke, at 3.20 a.m. yesterday.

Nearby residents said they called the emergency services after growing concerned for the man's well-being. He was taken to hospital by ambulance.

One man told The Royal Gazette: "I saw a guy with blood on his arm. He didn't seem to be too badly hurt, but his injury might have got worse if he had not got any medical attention.

"I called the Police but they said someone had already called them. Then Police arrived and an ambulance came to take him away."

Officers say they spoke to the victim but were unable to ascertain how he sustained his injuries because he gave them inconsistent answers to their inquiries.

The other incident is thought to have happened just a few hundred yards away.

Police say they saw the victim, a 22-year-old Hamilton Parish man, emerge soaking wet from the beach area near to Sunset Pass, Pembroke, at about 2.40 a.m.

He told them he had been chased by someone with a machete but had made good his escape by jumping into the water.

Officers were unable to confirm exactly where in Pembroke the man was when he leapt into the sea.

They said that they searched the man and he was later released.

A spokesman for Bermuda Police Service said: "It is unclear at this time whether this incident and the incident at St. John's Road in Pembroke are related."

Police are appealing for witnesses to either incident to call Hamilton Criminal Investigation Unit on 295-0011.

Alternatively, call the anonymous Crimestoppers hotline on 1-800-623-8477.