Bungling mugger leaves calling card

A thug left his calling card after a botched attempt to rob a woman on her own doorstep — his DNA.

The sample was taken from the woman’s jewellery and is now being tested for a match after three men tried to rob her in Derker

The 24-year-old, who doesn’t want to be named, was walking from her car to her house in Bottomfield Close at 7.20pm on Monday, November 12, when three masked men appeared out of nowhere and demanded her keys.

She said: “I had just done my shopping and I’d taken all the bags inside and locked my car. I was walking towards my house when three men in balaclavas suddenly appeared and grabbed me.

“One of them punched me in the side and another held the front door of my house shut so my boy friend couldn’t get out to help me but he managed to climb through the window and they ran off without managing to take anything.

“I am bruised but more than anything I am really shaken and it’s left me really paranoid about pulling up in front of my own home.

“Your home is supposed to be your safety zone and the fact that this happened right on my own doorstep with my boy friend just yards away terrifies me.

“I have to ring him when I am on my way home now and he waits outside for me because I don’t feel able to go in on my own.

“If this had happened somewhere else, I could have come to my home to feel safe again but I can’t do that because the attack happened here. It’s an awful feeling to think you’re not safe in your own home.

“When I reported it to the police they said there have been similar incidents reported in Shaw and in Middleton so I just want people to be aware as the nights get darker.

“I didn’t hear these men coming and they just seemed to appear out of nowhere screaming and shouting at me to hand my keys over. I’ve lived here for six years and nothing like this has happened before.

Anyone with information about the incident can call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.
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