Machete-wielding gang steal Wigan woman’s life savings in home burglary

An armed gang has stolen a woman’s life savings in an aggravated burglary in Wigan.

Three men broke into the home in Bickershaw and made off with a safe containing at least £50,000 in cash.

The victim, a woman in her 60s, was ‘painstakingly’ saving the money to support her vulnerable son, police have said.

Detective Inspector Patrick Wood has described it as a ‘despicable crime’.

Officers were called at around 11.20pm on Tuesday December 21 to reports of a burglary on Beacon Road in Bickershaw.

The gang were armed with pepper spray and a machete, and demanded that the victim hand over cash from a small safe.

They made their escape on foot and police are now looking for witnesses and information.

There were no injuries and no arrests have been made.

Mr 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.

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“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 at www.gmp.police.uk quoting log 3261 of 21/12/2021.

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

Featured image: Pxhere