Man stabbed in pub raid

A Staffordshire licensee's husband was stabbed in the back with a screwdriver after he confronted two masked men who broke into the pub.

The man and his wife were asleep in the bedroom above the Turf Lodge, on the A5 Watling Street, Norton Canes, when they were disturbed by a noise in the pub shortly after 0200 BST on Monday.

When they went to investigate, they were confronted by the two masked men who were brandishing screwdrivers.

The men ordered the couple to hand over cash and there was a scuffle during which the husband was wounded.

Store robbery

The wife then handed over the cash and the raiders fled the scene.

Staffordshire Police would not reveal how much money had been taken but said the couple, who have not been named, had been badly shaken and upset by the incident.

The man is not believed to be seriously injured.

Police have appealed for anyone with information on the raid, particularly anyone who may have seen a car on the car park of the pub prior to the raid, to contact Crimestoppers on 0800 555111.

In a separate incident, a masked gang armed with a pistol, hammer and iron bar assaulted two shop assistants and two of their friends at a Staffordshire general store.

Police and ambulance crews were called to the scene of the robbery at Broom Stores, near Chadsmoor, Cannock, shortly before 2300 BST on Friday.

Three of the injured, who are all Asian and aged between 40 and 50, were taken to Staffordshire General Hospital with head injuries, not thought to be serious.

A fourth man, also Asian, who was in the shop at the time was struck by an iron bar but did not require hospital treatment.