According to Police, it is thought that criminals may have booked an Auto Locksmith via a third party before assaulting him and stealing his van.
Two men in Kestrel Avenue attacked the man in his 70s, when he was in his van, programming a key. They attacked him, before stealing the van. The victim has minor injuries and is said to be very shaken by the attack.
A spokesperson for the police said they had “established that the locksmith may have actually been booked by the offenders via a third party who had claimed they had lost their key”.
Detective Constable Katie Halstead said: “This is a horrific incident in which an innocent elderly man has had his livelihood stolen from him during a frightening and violent attack, which has left him incredibly shaken.
A white Transit and a silver Fiat Punto were seen in the area at the time of the attack and Police are appealing for information. They are also on the lookout for two white males in the area at the time who are in their 20s and wearing black hoodies.
This is not the first time in recent months that a locksmith has been attacked under the same premise. The same thing happened in London just before Christmas when criminals hit the Locksmith in the face with a hammer leaving him with a fractured nose and jaw before driving off in his van.
Police are still on the lookout for the stolen vehicle, which has the registration plate LV13 AXM.