Courier mowed down by own van as thief strikes in Chase Cross Road, Romford
A courier narrowly escaped death after he was knocked down by a thief as he tried to stop him from stealing his van in Romford.
Kieron Short says that he was lucky to escape with just leg injuries after he was targeted by the thief at 10.15am on Wednesday May 16, in Chase Cross Road.
Kieron said: “I have got a real happy-go-lucky personality, but the more I talk about it, the more I realise that things could have been very different and I might not have even have been here.”
Kieron, 39, from Braintree, Essex, was on his second day of deliveries in Romford, when he pulled up outside of the address.
As he turned his back to get something from his van, the opportunist thug pushed him out of the way and jumped into the vehicle.
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The father-of-one ran in front of the van in an attempt to stop him driving off, but he was knocked to the ground, before the van sped off.
Kieran said: “I didn’t think that he would actually go straight for me.
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“The person who did this was just the lowest of the low because he saw me shouting at him from the front of the van and he just drove straight into me.”
Kieron, who is self-employed, managed to pick himself up from the ground and flag down the driver of a gold Vauxhall car.
While Kieron used the driver’s phone to call the police, the man tried to catch up with the van at speeds of up to 60mph.
After ten minutes chasing, the pair tracked down the van to Hulse Road, Collier Row, where they saw the van suddenly stop before the thief ran out.
Kieron tried to catch up with him before giving up the chase.
He is now appealing to find the good samaritan who stopped and helped him.
Kieron said: “This man saved my life because I was hurt and I could have easily been knocked over by someone else who might not have seen me.
“He is the only one that stopped, at the time I was hurt but because of the adrenaline I just wanted to get my van back.”
The thief made off with Kieran’s black jacket, leaving his wallet, mobile phone and sat nav.
He said: “I can’t believe that he just took an old tattered jumper, if he had asked me for it I would have given it to him.”
Anyone with information should call DC Hayworth at Romford CID on 101.
