A Warwickshire cyclist has been left with a broken arm after being pushed off his bike and assaulted in an attack that mirrors three others just a few miles away in a neighbouring county. In all four incidents, the car is described as being silver.

Update [10 August 2013]: Warwickshire Police have told road.cc that they do not believe the incident is linked to a series of others across the border in Leicestershire, where police have arrested a man in connection with four separate assaults.

Details of the latest were revealed yesterday by Warwickshire Police. The attack took place as the unnamed cyclist, a male aged in his twenties, rode from Nuneaton towards Ansley at around 7.40pm on the evening of Saturday 27 July.

As he headed along Ansley Road, he became aware that what was described as “a small silver car” that he had noticed shortly beforehand was travelling alongside him.

“The passenger had his window down and verbally abused [the cyclist] before opening the car door causing him to fall from the bike,” police said.

“The passenger is then believed to have got out of the car and kicked the cyclist and hit him over the head with a plastic jerry can.

“The passenger got back into the car, which drove off towards Arbury Road, Nuneaton.

“Passers by took the cyclist to a nearby house, where the police and relatives were called.”

The “shaken and bruised” cyclist was taken to Nuneaton’s George Eliot Hospital, where it was found that his arm had been broken in the incident.

Warwickshire Police have appealed for witnesses to the incident, or anyone who may be able to help identify the vehicle or its occupants.

Anyone with information is asked to contact DC 1604 Gavin Lambert at Nuneaton Local Investigation on 01926 415000 or 101 ext 3212, or the charity Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.

Earlier in July, we reported on a trio of incidents that happened just across the county border in southwest Leicestershire, with the vehicle involved described as “an old silver BMW.”

The locations of those incidents – Croft, Broughton Astley and Earl Shilton – are all within ten miles or so of the latest one in Warwickshire, raising the prospect the same people may be responsible.

In one of the assaults in Leicestershire, cyclist Andy Limb suffered a broken collarbone and coincidentally was treated at the same hospital as the victim of the Nuneaton attack.

Due to the similarities between the four attacks, we have of course alerted Warwickshire Police to the three incidents in Leicestershire.