'Disturbing' robberies in Luton woods after two teenage boys' phones snatched

The robberies took place in the Great Bramingham Wood area of Luton on Thursday, May 20, and Friday, May 21.

At around 8.25pm on Thursday, a teenage boy was walking in woods near Whitehorse Vale, when he was approached by a man who demanded he hand over his possessions.

The offender snatched the victim's phone and fled the scene. He is described as a black man, aged around 18 to 20 years old.

At around 8.35am on Friday morning, another teenage boy was walking out of Great Bramingham Wood, near Brompton Close, when he was approached by a man.

The man started talking to the victim and then threatened him with violence - demanding that he hand over his phone and ear pods.

The offender then walked off into the woods.

He is described as a 17 to 20-year-old black man, approximately 5’6’’ tall. At the time of the offence, he was wearing navy jogging bottoms, a black puffa jacket, Nike trainers, a dark grey snood and a black beanie hat.

PC James Holohan said: “These were clearly disturbing incidents, which understandably can cause some concern among our communities.

“We continue to follow a number of lines of enquiry and keep an open mind as to the two incidents being connected.

“This type of violent crime won’t be tolerated in our county and we would encourage anyone with information to come forward to help us identify those responsible.”

Anyone with information about these incidents is asked to contact Bedfordshire Police online or by calling 101 and quote reference number 40/25401/21.

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