Police in Preston have launched an appeal for information after a moped mugger sent a cyclist crashing into a wall, causing him to sustain serious head injuries.
The incident happened shortly before 8.25pm on Tuesday evening on Garstang Road at the junction with Aqueduct Street.
Lancashire Constabulary said that the victim, a 33-year-old man, was cycling with a woman when they were approached by two masked men on a moped.
The victim tried to ride away but was chased on foot by one of the men who pushed his bicycle from behind, causing him to crash into a wall.
Police said that it is believed that as he lay unconscious on the ground, one of the men searched him, although it is unknown whether anything was taken from him.
The muggers fled in the direction of Aqueduct Street, and police said that the victim remains in a serious condition in hospital.
Detective Constable Fabian Spence said: “The victim has suffered serious injuries and we are doing all we can to find those responsible. We need people to come forward with any information they may have to assist our investigation.
“We are particularly appealing to motorists who may have dash cam footage of the attack, or showing the moped being driven in the area in the moments leading up to, or following the incident,” he added.
Anyone who has information or dashcam footage is requested to call Lancashire Constabulary on 101 or email 4959 [at] lancashire.pnn.police.uk quoting log number 1317 of 19 February.
In August last year, we reported how a woman who commutes by bike in London had warned fellow cyclists to be vigilant after moped muggers tried to rob her in Edmonton Green.
And shortly before Christmas, it emerged that an off-duty Metropolitan Police officer commuting by bike had collared a pair of moped muggers in south west London after he spotted them riding on suspiciously on a footpath.
Born in Scotland, Simon moved to London aged seven and now lives in the Oxfordshire Cotswolds with his miniature schnauzer, Elodie. He fell in love with cycling one Saturday morning in 1994 while living in Italy when Milan-San Remo went past his front door. A daily cycle commuter in London back before riding to work started to boom, he's been news editor at road.cc since 2009. Handily for work, he speaks French and Italian. He doesn't get to ride his Colnago as often as he'd like, and freely admits he's much more adept at cooking than fettling with bikes.