10-year-old boy mugged for phone on West Road, Newcastle
Jul 30 2010 by Sophie Doughty, The Journal
THIS violent robber is being hunted after a 10-year-old schoolboy was mugged for his mobile phone.
Police hunting the attacker who left his victim terrified yesterday released CCTV images of the suspect.
The mugger followed the boy after he got off a bus on Newcastle’s West Road, and crossed the road opposite the Boots store.
And when the victim turned on to Hoyle Avenue, near the Mosque, he was attacked by the thug who punched him in the face and knocked him to the ground.
The robber then stole several items from him including his mobile phone.
The boy suffered minor injuries in the mugging.
Following the incident, which happened at around 3.30pm on May 24, the suspect ran back towards the West Road and along a back lane which runs adjacent to the main road, and then on to a Stagecoach bus, which headed towards the city centre.
Det Con Craig Tomlinson, who is investigating the crime, is urging people to get in touch if they recognise the man caught on CCTV.
He said: “This was a cowardly offence on a young boy which left him shaken and distressed.
“We’re doing all we can to find the person responsible and have carried out a number of inquiries, including house-to-house and speaking to witnesses.
“We’ve now got some CCTV images of the suspect which we’re releasing to the public in a bid to identify the man believed to be involved in this robbery.
“I’d urge anyone who recognises the man in the images, who saw the incident take place or has information about who is responsible, to contact us as soon as possible.”
The suspect is described as being white, aged between 18 and 20 years old and 6ft tall.
He is of slim build with blond hair which is shaved short and has freckles on his face.
At the time of the robbery he was wearing a navy blue tracksuit top with white stripes down the sleeves, and matching navy blue tracksuit bottoms, which also had stripes down the legs.
Anyone with any information is asked to call Northumbria Police on 0345 604 3043 and ask for Det Con Tomlinson at West Road CID, or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555111.
