Police investigating three armed robberies in Bradford and Leeds have appealed for information.
At about 7pm on Monday (12 January 2015), a man entered a house in Wooler Avenue, Beeston, and made demands for gold jewellery from one of the occupants.
The man, who was believed to be carrying a gun, was followed by four other men who were also carrying weapons, possibly knives.
The men made threats towards the occupants before searching the premises. They are believed to have taken a quantity of jewellery.
The incident is being linked to incidents the same day at Rockland Crescent, Clayton and Broad Lane in Bradford.
Local resident Ian Kemp caught some of the incident on CCTV footage, which he has passed to the Police. He is calling for the ginnel between Wooler Avenue and Barkly Road to be closed, as it has provided an additional exit to the street which may have been used in this and previous incidents over recent months. He is also concerned about litter, drinking and anti-social behaviour in the ginnel.
The suspects are believed to be white men in their late teens or early twenties. All wore black balaclavas and black gloves.
Detective Inspector Ryan Bragg, of Bradford District CID, said:
“The descriptions of the males involved in these incidents lead us to believe that they may be linked, so we would appeal to anyone who might have seen anyone acting suspiciously in the above areas around the stated times to get in touch.
“A black Mitsubishi L200 vehicle or similar was seen in the area at the time of all three offences and we believe that this was used by the suspects, so I would ask anyone with information about that vehicle to come forward.
“Police are focusing high-visibility patrols in these areas of Bradford and Leeds following these incidents, and we would urge anyone with any concerns to speak to our officers.”
Anyone with information is asked to contact Bradford District CID on 101 or call Crimestoppers on 0800 555111.
UPDATE 16 January 2015
The Bradford Telegraph & Argus is reporting that two white men, aged 24 and 28, have been arrested in Bradford in connection with these armed robberies.
