Robbers strike showroom

A gang of robbers stormed into a top motorcycle showroom, threatened staff and marched out with a brand new Honda Fireblade worth £11,000.

One of the four balaclava-wearing thugs convinced the sales manager he had a gun by keeping one hand in a pocket as if ready to draw, while shouting: “You’ll get hurt.”

The four pulled up on two scooters before carrying out the mid-day robbery of a leading franchise in Greenwich, south London.

After running outside with the Blade, one of the raiders jumped on while another, riding a scooter, pushed it away using his foot against the pillion footrest, a technique now more common than using a van.

Mark Osborne, 41, sales manager at Metropolis Motorcycles, where a gang struck on March 11, said: “The two pillion passengers ran in. I was on the phone and one grabbed the Fireblade and started running with it. He was straight out the door.

“The other guy was standing by the door and as I came around the desk, he put his hand in his pocket to suggest he had a gun and started shouting ‘Shut up, stay back, you’ll get hurt.’

“The first thing that came into my head was my two kids. Seconds later they were already up the road with the bike.”

MCN recently revealed how a motorcyclist watched a gang of balaclava-wearing thieves steal his KTM 625 SX from a Greenwich street in September after one produced what looked like a gun.

Police initially treated it as an ordinary vehicle theft, but on February 2 gave MCN a commitment that robbery squad officers would contact the victim “within the next few days”.

But six weeks later the victim had still heard nothing. He said: “Guess what? I haven’t heard from them.”

As yet the Met has given no explanation for not contacting him.

Read more on this in MCN, on sale now.