A round-up of crime stories from across Lancashire
Girl slapped in street attack
A student was slapped in an unprovoked attack on a Preston street. The 19-year-old was walking down St Paul’s Road, Deepdale, at around 1.45pm last Tuesday when she was followed by a group of youths. Det Sgt John Crichton, of Preston Police, said: “One has tugged on her bag strap, then slapped her in the face before running away.”
Man robbed in ‘bear hug’
A man was robbed after being grabbed in a ‘bear hug’ as he walked home. The 63-year-old was grabbed as he walked down Bolton’s Court, Preston, at 11pm on Saturday. He was held while a second rifled through his pockets before fleeing empty-handed. Anyone with any information should call 101.
Bin destroyed in street fire
Yobs set alight to a wheeled bin close to homes on a Preston estate. Firefighters were called to Birkdale Drive, Savick, shortly after 1am on Saturday.
Hoax callers made 4,500 calls to force
Hoax callers made 4,544 calls to Lancashire Police between January and September this year, the force has revealed. It equates to 1.3% of the total 437,044 calls the police dealt with in that time. A spokesman said the “vast majority” of those calls fall into one of three categories - silent 999 calls made from public phone boxes, very young children playing with home phones and calling emergency numbers, or drunken people mistakenly ringing for taxis. Shaunna Spedding, 27, of The Square, School Street, Farington, was jailed for 43 weeks at Preston Crown Court in July for making two bomb hoax calls.