A man was struck by a crossbow in a horrifying assault captured on a doorbell camera. Officers were summoned to Downway Lane in St Helens, Merseyside around 10pm on Sunday following an attack on a man in his 50s. The victim was rushed to hospital where he is currently in a serious but stable condition.
Authorities suspect the injuries were inflicted by a crossbow. The assailants have been described as five men, all clad in dark attire and face masks, who fled the scene towards Fleet Lane. Footage from a Ring doorbell, shared on social media, depicts the victim rushing to the door of a house with a bloodied face, pursued by a masked individual brandishing the crossbow before a struggle ensues. The victim frantically tries to prevent the attacker from shooting the arrow at him while pounding on the house door, reports the Manchester Evening News.
As he knocks on the door, the shooter manages to discharge the weapon, lodging an arrow into the leg of the man in his 50s. The crossbow-wielding man, attired in a navy and grey The North Face jacket, grey jogging bottoms and black trainers, with his hood up and sunglasses on, then seizes the arrow from the victim’s leg and extracts it. The footage then ends as they move away from the front door.
Police are still in the initial phase of their probe but have indicated that the incident appears to be a deliberate act, and efforts are ongoing to track down those accountable. Officers are maintaining a presence at the scene to offer reassurance as they conduct CCTV and witness enquiries.
Det Insp Steve Byrom commented: “We are in the very early stages of the investigation and we are determined to find the people responsible. I understand that the community will rightly be concerned by this incident but please be assured that we are determined to find the suspects involved.
“We believe that five males fled the area on foot and enquiries are ongoing to locate them and find any weapons used in this incident. We are also keen to speak to anyone who was in the general area who saw or heard anything suspicious or believes they captured something significant on their dashcam, CCTV or doorbell camera.
“We know that violence and weapons causes misery on our streets and we would ask for the public’s help in coming forward with any bit of information they have so we can find the people responsible.”
Anyone with information is urged to get in touch with Merseyside Police social media desk via X @MerPolCC or on Facebook ‘Merseyside Police Contact Centre’. Information can also be reported through the force’s website or by calling 101 quoting incident reference 25000577410.