Havering courier critical after thieves hit him with own van and leave him for dead
Members of the public shield the victim as paramedics work to save his life. Picture: Grayson Darcy-Burton - Credit: Archant
A van driver has been critically injured after thieves hit him with his own vehicle and left him for dead in the road.
The courier, from Havering, was making a delivery in Wood Avenue, Purfleet, Essex, at about 12.20pm yesterday when two men hijacked his vehicle before driving off.
The victim tried to stop the thieves, clinging to the outside of the cab, but fell off after about 100 yards and was run over by the van, sustaining multiple, serious injuries.
The would-be thieves abandoned the van, leaving the victim lying injured in the road, before running off in the direction of the Circus Tavern, in Meads Corner, Purfleet.
An air ambulance landed nearby and took the driver to the Royal London Hospital, Whitechapel, east London, where his condition remains critical.
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The injured driver, in his 50s, is the owner of the van and is contracted to a major courier firm.
Ch Insp Rachel Nolan said: “This is an appalling incident in which a driver has been critically injured while trying to prevent the theft of his van and the packages he was carrying for a courier company. The two thieves callously drove off while the man was holding on to the cab then ran away leaving him with terrible injuries. We urgently need help from the public to find these criminals.”
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Two men, aged 26 and 28 and both from Purfleet, were arrested on suspicion of attempted murder in Grays, at about 2am today
Any witnesses who have not yet contacted police or anyone with information about events leading to the incident should call 101, send an email to collisionappeal@essex.pnn.police.uk or contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.
