EXCLUSIVE: Mark Wahlberg asks to meet the man he beat and racially abused face-to-face after MailOnline reveals his Vietnamese victim forgives him and backs his bid for a pardon

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Hollywood star Mark Wahlberg wants to meet the man he assaulted 26 years ago to apologize in person, Mail Online can reveal.

The actor has offered to fly Johnny Trinh and his family to Los Angeles so he can say sorry for the assault.

The actor reached out to Trinh after MailOnline revealed he is happy for the star to get a pardon for the brutal attack carried out during his wild teenage years.

Wahlberg was served 45 days behind bars.

He said the sobering experience of being in jail made him realize he had to get his life in order and stay away from crime.

Forgiveness: Johnny Trinh was assaulted by actor Mark Wahlberg in 1988. He said that he believed the actor should be allowed a fresh start - and that until MailOnline told him had no idea he was attacked by a celebrity. Now a representative for the actor has been in touch to say he wants to meet his victim face to face

On the way to rehabilitation: Wahlberg as rapper Marky Mark in 1991, three years after the attack on Mr Trinh and a series of other crimes

Plea: The formal pardon application by Mark Wahlberg in which he asks for the crime he committed at 16 to be wiped from his record

Wahlberg,43, has applied to the Governor of Massachusetts seeking a criminal pardon citing how he has turned his life around to become an international star.

A representative for Wahlberg called at the Trinh family home in Arlington, Texas, after reading Mail Online's exclusive interview with the 59 year old father of two.

Trinh had never spoken out the assault and had no idea the man who attacked him in 1988 later became one of Hollywood's biggest names.

Trinh's daughter Tammy,21, said:' We have been told that Mr Wahlberg wants to apologise in person and has offered to fly us to Los Angeles.

'My father is meeting with his employer to see if he can get time off from work. It is very exciting.'

Trinh, a Vietnam war veteran who fought in the anti-Communist South Vietnamese Army alongside US forces, spoke for the first time to Mail Online about the brutal attack. 

Mark Wahlberg, who appeared on Late Night with Seth Meyers on Thursday evening, made no secret about his wayward teenage years

Trinh says he would like to meet Wahlberg, seen in a car in New York on Thursday evening, to tell him he does not bear a grudge

Married life: Johnny Trinh, on his wedding day to fellow Vietnamese refugee Hoa Du Trinh. The couple now live in Arlington, Texas, and had no idea who his assailant was

Family life: Mr Trinh, his wife Hoa and children Steven (foreground) and Tammy (right) outside a Buddhist temple in Arlington Texas, where they now live

Ordeal: Mr Trinh had to flee Vietnam when the Communist North overran the pro-American South, ending the Vietnam war. He became one of the 'boat people' 

He dismissed reports that the attack was so severe it left him blinded in one eye.

He revealed he had already lost his left eye after being injured during a grenade explosion during the Vietnam war.

Trinh, who changed his name to Johnny from Hoa after he emigrated to the US, said he would be willing to support Wahlberg's plea for a pardon.

He told Mail Online: 'He was young and reckless but I forgive him now.

Everyone deserves another chance.

'I would like to see him get a pardon. He should not have the crime hanging over him any longer.'

Trinh also added that he would like to meet Wahlberg face to face to tell him he does not bear a grudge.

'He paid for his crime when he went to prison. I am not saying that it did not hurt when he punched me in the face, but it was a long time ago.

'He has grown up now. I am sure he has his own family and is a responsible man.'

Officials with the Governor of Massachusetts office have also reached out to Trinh and asked him to make a statement.

Investigators working with the office have been unable to trace another Vietnamese man who was assaulted at the same time as Trinh.

Wahlberg has said he feels he is a better person than when he carried out the unprovoked assault.

During a round of TV interviews to promote his new film 'The Gambler' in New York he said he was not using his celebrity status to secure the pardon. 

Scene of crime: Mr Trinh was grabbed by Wahlberg, who as fleeing another assault, then punched in the eye

He said: 'Everyone has an opinion and has a reason why they think I'm doing it

'I've been working very hard to correct a lot of mistakes that I made since the day that I woke up and realized, 'You know what? I need to be a leader instead of a follower,''.

Speaking at the premiere of his film he denied he was using his celebrity status to get the criminal record expunged.

'In no way shape or form was I trying to use my celebrity or success to say, 'Well, I feel entitled to get this because of the fame and fortune,'' he said.

Wahlberg said the pardon would be proof that he has moved on with his life.

'I've worked really hard to be a positive influence for kids growing up in communities like mine who don't really have a chance, and try to provide an opportunity for them to be more successful and that's why I'm doing it.'

'And it's not like the story hasn't been talked about. I've been talking about it for 25 years.

'You read any piece that's ever been done on me it's really the same old kind of story and for me to kind of be able to move on from that and move forward and continue to show kids that anything's possible.'

But while the Governor of Massachusetts considers the plea from Wahlberg there is a growing backlash against the star.

Asian activist group 18 Million Rising have launched a petition to attempt to stop pardon request.

In a statement on its website, 18 Million Rising asked, 'Why should someone who has done nothing to support his victims or atone for his crimes get a pardon?'

More than 8,000 people have signed a petition calling for the pardon to be denied.

On their website 18 Million Rising explain why they want to see Wahlberg's bid rejected. 

New start? Mark Wahlberg and Rhea Durham attend 'The Gambler' premiere.  Wahlberg wants to become an LAPD reserve cop. But a felony conviction from his youth may block his attempt to become a volunteer

Modest: Mr Trinh now lives with his family in a small home in Arlington, Texas, and earns $9 an hour printing logos on t-shirts. He says: 'Life has been tough.'

Family: Trinh's daughter Tammy (left) said of learning her father was attacked by a star: 'It is kind of surprising. My father has never once mentioned the assault and to hear it was Mark Wahlberg is kind of crazy.

It says:'In 1988, Mark Wahlberg attacked two Asian American men in separate racially motivated hate crimes. The first, Thanh Lam, was pummeled with a 5-foot long wooden stick. According to court documents, Wahlberg screamed, 'Vietnam f***ing sh*t' as he beat Lam unconscious. After fleeing the scene where he assaulted Lam, Wahlberg beat his second victim, Hoa Trinh, punching him in the eye and leaving him blind.

Now, over 25 years after these horrific crimes, Wahlberg is petitioning the Massachusetts State Parole Board and Governor Deval Patrick to pardon his hate crime conviction.

'Wahlberg claims that he is a changed man, and no longer the person he was in 1988 when he shamelessly shattered the lives of two Asian men...

'We demand that the Massachusetts State Parole Board and Governor Patrick deny Mark Wahlberg a pardon for his hate crimes. Not only is granting a pardon an affront to justice, but even asking for one completely disrespects Wahlberg's victims.'

The group also questioned Wahlberg's motive saying he wants the pardon so it does not affect his business plans.

The actor wants to expand his chain of Wahlburger restaurants and a criminal conviction could stop him getting a alcohol licence in California.

A spokesman for Wahlberg was unavailable for comment.  

MARK WAHLBERG'S PARDON APPLICATION