Hemlington attack: Couple, 95 and 79, left frightened by brick attack

An "elderly and vulnerable" couple say they are too scared to open their front door after their home was bombarded by youths armed with bricks.

The 79-year-old man was knocked out by a missile while his wife, 95, narrowly avoided being hit when another brick was hurled through a window.

Cleveland Police is investigating the "distressing" attack, which happened in Middlesbrough on Saturday.

The woman said she had been left feeling "like a prisoner" in her home.

In a direct plea to those responsible, she told BBC Radio Tees: "I would say to them, come and see the property that you have damaged, what you have done, not just to the property but to our lives."

The couple - who the BBC is not naming - said they had no idea why their home was targeted.

They said they first heard a loud bang on the back door of their home in Hemlington at about 18:30 BST on Saturday.

The man said he went to investigate and saw "two youths run away with balaclavas on and dark clothes".

"I walked up to the back gates and the next thing I knew something hit me, I went down," he added.

"The wife came out, I eventually got up because she heard me moaning and there was blood all over my shirt, dripping down my face and then I saw what had hit me, it was a wall brick."

Then they heard a crash in their living room and went in to find a brick had smashed through the window, landing where the woman had been sitting just moments before.

"It has really frightened me. I've been afraid to sit here on my own," she said.

"It's come to a time where are you too frightened to open the door. It shouldn't be like that.

"I've felt for a while I'm like a prisoner here because you don't dare go out at night. It's awful."

Redcar police station was daubed with anti-police graffiti during widespread disorder last weekend

'Destroying your own homes'

Cleveland Police said the attack happened on what is known locally as "mischief night", during which its officers dealt with "a considerable number of incidents".

A dispersal order had been in place at the time, which allowed officers to force people to leave an area if they were being disruptive.

The couple's daughter called her mother "an indomitable woman", but said she had been put in a position where she now wanted to leave her own home.

"It's affected them deeply - more deeply than they would like to admit," the daughter added.

"I am frightened for them because their life as they have known it has changed dramatically over a weekend."

She pleaded to the youths behind recent anti-social behaviour in the neighbourhood to stop.

"It's a home for many, many people, there's a lot of good people in Hemlington, please stop doing your criminal acts and act responsible - you are all destroying your own homes."

Ch Insp Daryll Tomlinson said the couple were "elderly and vulnerable" and it had been a "horrific" incident.

He said they had been "looking forward" to giving out sweets to local children for Halloween but the attack had ruined it.

"You just think, 'why? Why is this happening?'" he said.

He appealed for the neighbours and community to come forward and provide information.