Three midlands bookmakers have been attacked in December
PICTURE: Mark CranhamViolent gang targeting racecourse bookmakers
A GANG of violent and well-organised criminals armed with hammers and baseball bats are believed to be targeting racecourse bookmakers in the midlands after Martyn Verrell became the third local layer to be robbed this month.
Verrell, who was returning to his Leicester home following Wincanton's Saturday meeting, was left in hospital overnight after the assault, which comes just two weeks after fellow bookmakers Barry Johnson and Morley Taylor were robbed in similar circumstances.
Although police are unwilling to publicly connect the attacks, bookmakers in the midlands are convinced a single gang is behind the string of attacks. Each assault has involved at least threeweapon-wielding men, all wearing balaclavas, who appear to have meticulously planned their violence-strewn robberies.
The latest heist unfolded as Verrell, along with two employees and one family member, returned home in his beige Ford Galaxy following racing last Saturday at Wincanton.
A source close to the family, who did not want to be named, said on Monday: "Martyn parked around the corner from his house and as soon as they stopped the car everyone became conscious of a car pulling up fast behind them, blocking them in.
"Two or three blokes wearing balaclavas and carrying baseball bats and hammers got out their car and one of them smashed the side window and the windscreen, cuttingMartyn on the forehead.
"They then wrenched open the other side door and hit the other family member in the chest with a hammer before pulling him out the car. The two employees in the back managed to get out the car and raise the alarm in a nearby pub."
Despite making off with the bookmaker's car, the gang were left largely empty handed as Verrell, who has been robbed twice before, had earlier deposited the vast majority of his cash in the firm's nightsafe, leaving the thieves with just £350 in small notes and change.
Anyone with information on any of the robberies should call Leicestershire Constabulary on 0116 222 2222 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
