Mark Cavendish assaulted in violent armed robbery at family home
9 December 2021, 06:31
Olympic cyclist Mark Cavendish has appealed for help catching robbers who assaulted him in a violent attack at his family home.
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Four armed intruders entered Mr Cavendish's home in the Ongar area of Essex in the early hours of November 27, Essex Police said.
They revealed that the group assaulted Mr Cavendish, 36, and threatened his wife Peta in the presence of their young children.
None of the family sustained serious injuries and the burglars left, stealing a Luis Vuitton suitcase and two high-value watches, the force said.
Police have released CCTV images of the intruders as part of their investigation, with Mr Cavendish saying in a statement that his family were "extremely distressed" following the incident.
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He said: "As I'm sure you will understand, this incident has left our family extremely distressed – not just myself and Peta but our children as well, who feared for their lives and are now struggling with the after-effects.
"No one should have to experience the sort of violence and threats made against us, let alone this happening in a family home – a place where everyone should feel safe.
"The items taken are simply material goods and our priority at the moment is to make sure we all recover from the incident as a family, and we know this is likely to take some time.
"We would like to place on record our thanks to Essex Police for a really quick response and the professionalism and the focus they are clearly putting into the investigation."
Detective Inspector Tony Atkin, who is the senior investigating officer on the case, said it was "undoubtedly a targeted incident" while Mr Cavendish remained at home to recover from several injuries from a crash at a track event in Belgium.
He added: "It is likely the people who stole these items are attempting to offload them for sizeable sums of money and I would urge anyone who is being offered these items to please get in touch with us – they are stolen property.
"If you have been offered these items, please contact us immediately."
Police also confirmed that there would be a visible police presence in the area following the incident.
No arrests have been made as of yet.
Anyone with information can contact Loughton CID on 101 quoting reference 42/275184/21, submit a report online or contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.
