Man 'critical' after hammer attack

Man 'critical' after hammer attack

Thieves rammed car through driveway gates

Police are treating an attack on a man with a hammer at his home in south Belfast as attempted murder.

Detectives are searching for three men believed to have been involved in the attack that happened at about 0600 GMT on Sunday.

Maurice McCracken, 54, suffered serious head injuries when a gang of four burst into his Strangford Avenue home in the Balmoral area of the city.

They beat him with the hammer as he slept in bed with his wife.

He remains in a critical condition.

A man was arrested shortly afterwards and is being questioned by detectives in connection with burglary and assault.

The thieves stole the house and car keys before using the vehicle to ram through the gates of the driveway.

They then made their way to another house in the street where they attacked an elderly man and his son with a hammer before trying to steal their car.

The son sustained a head injury while his father suffered a blow to his wrist.

It was an incident which has just has rocked the community

Reverend Derek Bowden

The gang moved on to nearby Harberton Park where they hijacked another car and drove to Balmoral Avenue where police stopped the vehicle.

Two of the men ran off towards Musgrave Park Hospital while a third man ran towards the Boucher Road.

Officers carried out door-to-door inquiries on Monday evening, and a mobile police station was set up on Strangford Avenue.

'Reassurance'

Detective Chief Inspector Will Kerr said the operation was aimed at providing a visible presence and some reassurance to local residents.

He said that two crime prevention officers would be on hand to give specific advice.

Leaflets offering advice on anti-crime measures have been distributed to local residents by crime prevention officers.

Detectives said they have received a good response from people in the area.

Earlier, Mr McCracken's daughter Kelly appealed for anyone with any information about the attack on her father to come forward.

"My father was lying asleep in his bed when they just hit him," she said.

"From his injuries we can see he didn't even have a chance to defend himself.

"They hit him at least half a dozen times directly to his skull," she said.

Local Presbyterian minister the Reverend Derek Bowden said the community was shocked.

"The first thing that everyone felt was absolute sympathy and just amazement at what happened to one individual and to those who knew him, and then what had happened to those close neighbours," he said.

"It simply was without any shadow of a doubt appalling.

'Brutality'

"It was an incident which has just has rocked the community, there is no other way to say it than that."

SDLP assembly member Carmel Hanna said more deterrents were needed.

"People no longer feel safe in their own homes," she said.

"I have met several victims of violent robberies in the last few months and there is a certain amount of fear.

"The judiciary have to take this issue far more seriously and we need much stiffer sentences."