Robbers get away with £1m after hijacking lorry

Robbers who hijacked a lorry and handcuffed its driver made off with a haul worth £1m (€1.47m), British police said today.

The gang forced the driver of an 18-tonne lorry to stop in Colnbrook, Slough, last Friday, then bundled him into the back and helped themselves to almost 2,000 digital camcorders, police said.

The driver’s ordeal began after he passed a white van waiting to enter a roundabout near the Golden Cross pub in Horton Road, Colnbrook, just after 7am on December 9.

The van overtook him before cutting in front and forcing him to stop, at which point its driverjumped out, Thames Valley Police said today.

Seeing a man approach him, the lorry driver initially thought he was caught up in a road rage incident but noticed that the stranger was wearing a balaclava.

The robber got into the passenger side of his cab, handcuffed the driver and pushed him into the back of his lorry before taking the wheel and driving to Stanwell, near Heathrow airport.

The lorry then stopped and a second robber got inside and told the handcuffed driver to stay down.

The pair spent 15 minutes transferring the entire cargo of camcorders into another vehicle, which police believe may have been a light-coloured lorry that followed the other two vehicles to Stanwell.

The robbers then drove off, leaving the driver handcuffed in the lorry. He was found by a member of the public about 10 minutes later.

Detective Constable Stuart Ritchie of Thames Valley Police said the driver was left “shaken” and suffered bruising and swelling to his wrists from the handcuffs.

The gang made off with a total of 1,960 silver JVC digital camcorders – model number GRD240EK – with a retail value of £1m.

Mr Ritchie added: “Although only two men were seen, it is believed that there were at least four people involved in the robbery.

“We would urge anyone who witnessed the incident, or who saw anyone behaving suspiciously in the area on Friday morning, to come forward.

“We would also like to hear from anyone who is offered a brand-new JVC camcorder matching this description for a bargain price to contact police immediately.”

Anyone with information is urged to call 08458 505 505.