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Gun Bandits Attack Ash Pub Landlady and Steal £6,000

Published on: 8 Dec, 2020
Updated on: 10 Dec, 2020

The Lion Brewery in Ash

By David Reading

Two masked robbers posing as delivery drivers pistol-whipped pub landlady Lyndsay Armitage in Ash on Monday morning and stole £6,000.

The men are believed to have tried the Lion Brewery pub first then just after 8am forced their way into the bungalow next door where the family lives, attacking 40-year-old Lyndsey Armitage and her 81-year-old husband Mike.

Lyndsey and Mike Armitage. Picture taken in 2019.

One robber burst into a bedroom and held a gun to the head of Mr Armitage, threatening to kill him. He was thrown on the floor and his wife, tied up, was laid next to him.

Luckily, their 10-year-old son Paul had left to school. Their daughter Lexi, who is seven, heard the noise and hid in her bedroom.

But the men, who also had knives, did not know Mrs Armitage had dialled 999 on a concealed phone and the operator heard her screaming and realised this was a robbery. Armed police arrived rapidly but by then the robbers had escaped.

Mrs Armitage, who was treated in hospital for head injuries, said: “I tried to stop them getting in but they kept hitting me with the gun which split my head and ear open. All they wanted was money. They took our holiday savings.”

The money was to pay for a family trip to Disneyland.

She added: “We’re all OK now. I’ve had to have my head and ear glued back together and luckily my hand isn’t broken, just bruised from where I was hitting them so much. But we’re all safe and alive which is the main thing.”

The men were described as white, wearing black hats with the masks. One was about 5ft 7in, the other about 6ft.

Mr Armitage said he wanted to thank all of those people who had offered their good wishes.

The couple are well-known in Ash for their community spirit, having raised more than £200,000 for local and national charities.

Mr Armitage has just won a Lifetime Achievement Award by the Ei Group pub company for his to charity fund-raising. At 77, he swam 77 lengths of the Aldershot swimming pool for the Phyllis Tuckwell Hospice.

Detective Inspector Pete Howgate said: “We appreciate this will have caused a lot of concern in the local community and we would like to reassure people we are doing everything we can and pursuing various lines of enquiry to establish who was responsible.

“This appears to have been planned and there was no risk to the wider public. We would like to thank everyone affected by the police activity for their patience and cooperation.

“We are appealing to anyone with any information who has not already come forward, to get in touch with us straight away.”

Anyone with relevant information should call 101, quoting reference number PR/45200129229, or contact:

If you do not wish to leave your name, please call the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

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Responses to Gun Bandits Attack Ash Pub Landlady and Steal £6,000

  1. Pat Scott Reply

    December 8, 2020 at 5:14 pm

    This whole event has shocked all in Ash, Ash Vale & Ash Green. Everyone feels astounded that this vile crime has happened to such lovely, well-known and community-minded couple.

    Mike and Lyndsay are real heroes for our community. Not only have they achieved so much together fund-raising but also have gone out of their way to keep the community together and supported in the Coronavirus lockdown. Many local charities have benefitted from their fantastic fund-raising, and also enjoyed the warm and caring atmosphere of The Lion Brewery.

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