£50K stolen in aggravated Wigan home raid

Detectives are appealing for information

Appalled police say the raid - on an address in Beacon Road, Bickershaw, at around 11.20pm on Tuesday December 21 - will have a serious and negative effect on the future of the victim's vulnerable son.

Officers attending the crime scene established that three men armed with the spray and large knife burst into the house and demanded that the victim - who is in her 60s - hand over cash from a safe.

Following the robbery, the offenders then made off on foot to Bickershaw Lane.

There were no injuries and inquiries are ongoing. No arrests have been made.

Det Insp Patrick Wood, of GMP Wigan CID, said: "We believe this to be a targeted incident and are appealing to the public to find those responsible.

"A small safe with at least £50,000 in cash is believed to have been stolen from the property - these were the victim's life savings which had been painstakingly saved over a long period of time and were in place to support her vulnerable son in the future when the victim was unable to care for him herself.

"Right now, there are three men in your community who have committed the despicable crime of stealing the life savings from a woman, which has seriously impacted the future of her vulnerable son, and I expect this will disgust you as much as it has the police.

"If you know who these offenders are - I would suggest somebody will do, as this is a significant amount of money stolen and difficult to keep quiet .

"I strongly urge you to do the right thing for the family and contact us and report them for this awful crime."

Anyone with information - including CCTV or dashcam footage from the area at the time of the incident - and anyone who finds a discarded safe, is asked to report it online or by using the LiveChat service quoting log 3261 of 21/12/2021.

Alternatively, you can contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

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