Reward to catch 'vicious' raiders who stole luxury watches and bags

VICTIM HIT WITH SLEDGEHAMMER AND FORCED TO OPEN SAFE

- By RUCSANDRA MOLDOVEANU

The offenders were captured on CCTV entering the property

A TERRIFIED couple were attacked by a gang of five armed men who forced their way into their home and stole watches and caused damage worth £1 million.

The raid took place at a property in Knowle Road, Kimberley, when the gang wearing masks and dark clothing smashed their way in.

Some of the intruders were armed, with one carrying a sledgehammer and another a pickaxe.

The male householder was attacked with the sledgehammer when he tried to confront the raiders and was struck to his back and knee.

The victim was then pinned to a sofa while the attackers demanded he told them the location of valuables and access to a safe.

The man was then forced to open the safe as he was threatened with further violence. The gang then filled a sack with a large number of luxury watches which were inside.

Meanwhile, his wife was dragged upstairs by some of the other raiders and was forced to show them where the rest of the watches were stored.

The intruders also stole many of the woman’s luxury designer handbags as well as a mobile phone and a purse containing bank cards.

The incident, which happened at around 7.40pm on Thursday, December 4, left the victims with a loss of nearly £1 million in terms of the value of stolen items and cost of repair work.