68-year-old punched in the head during spate of car crime

The attack happened in the Drumard Crescent area just before 7pm last Thursday evening and involved up to four men in their late teens or early 20s.

During the incident the 68-year-old man was punched about the head and body several times leaving him with multiple bruises, a missing tooth and a suspected fracture of his right hand.

The courageous pensioner, who does not wish to be named, spoke after spending the night in hospital. "I was just sitting in the living room when I heard a noise at the door like someone was at the letterbox," he said. "So I looked around and next thing I noticed was a hand on the front door handle closing the door over.

"By the time I got over to the door to see what was going on he was in my car and trying to get away. He must have lifted the keys off my kitchen table."

The pensioner ran to the car door and was able to get the keys from the thief. "I got the keys out of his hand, but just as that happened I felt a terrible blow to the side of my head from someone I hadn't seen."

Despite his injuries, he still had one foot in his car until he was thrown to the ground as the gang sped off.

"I was getting punched and kicked the whole time it was happening and my wife had come out and screamed that I had a heart condition but scum like these boys don't care about anything," he said

The victim's wife is a retired nurse had feared the worst after the attack.

"I honestly thought he was going to die when I got him back into the house, but thankfully he started to come round when I got him his angina spray. The ambulance crew arrived very quickly and they were brilliant," she said.

The injured man says he is grateful not to be more seriously injured but feels the incident has affected his sense of security.

"I have lived here for 27 years and nothing like this has happened before but this makes you more wary. I will definitely be locking my front door from now on," he said.

The Red Citroen Picasso car was later seen at a service station on the Saintfield Road, Carryduff, around 8.30pm when it made off without paying for fuel. It was pursued by police but was lost at the main Saintfield Road M1 interchange at Lisburn.

The same gang is believed to have been involved in a series of incidents on the same night.

At approximately 6pm, a woman leaving the leisure complex at Lisburn was approached by four youths described as being in their early teens to twenties. One grabbed the lady and attempted to pull car keys from her hand. The youth then let go and walked away. He turned and threw an item back at the lady which turned out to be the remote opening key fob from her car keys. The youths made off toward Longstone Street.

Then around 6.45pm a woman disturbed three males trying to steal her car from the front of her house in the Iniscarn Park area. The lady opened the passenger door and removed the keys from the ignition, trapping one of the youths in her car. The youth attempted to break the window in the car to get out at which stage the lady opened the door.

The car keys were taken from the inside of the front door.

A short time later a male resident of the Causeway Meadows area reported a number of youths attempting to steal a Volkswagen Golf. The owner of the vehicle gave chase and the youths ran into the Drumard Park area.

The youths are described as having short cropped hair and wearing tracksuit bottoms and black gloves.

Detectives in Lisburn are appealing for information about the robbery and the other incidents which all happened before 7pm to contact them on 0845 600 8000. Information can also be passed anonymously to the Crimestoppers charity on 0800 555 111..