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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
National
Lorraine King

Coronavirus: Peak District farmer 'attacked when he asked walker to go home'

A farmer was left 'left shaken and bruised' after claiming he was attacked when he asked a Peak District walker to 'go home'.

The victim, from Edale, said he was punched 15 times and kicked in the ribs as he disinfected his gates on Sunday at around 9.45am.

He was cleaning the gates due to the 'hundreds of people' walking past on Sunday, Mail Online reports.

Derbyshire Police have asked people to delay a trip to the Peak District as the weather warms up and stay at home as ordered by the Government.

"While we have this fantastic space in our county, right now is not the time to be using it," the force said.

A note left by a local on a car parked in the Peak District (PA)

A message posted on Facebook on behalf of the farmer read: 'I am a farmer in Edale I went out at 9am to feed my sheep on the side of the footpath, I was spraying the gate handles with disinfectant due to the hundreds of people that went through them yesterday.

"I got a very funny look of a man walking and said to him there are too many people here will you please just go home!

"I have just had to phone the police as my thanks was to be punched about 15 times then kicked in the ribs as I hit the floor.

"Please, please, please, leave us alone."

Derbyshire Police said in a statement: "We were called at about 9.45am on Sunday following a report of an assault on a farmer who was disinfecting gates due to the number of walkers passing through over the weekend.

"The victim was left shaken and bruised but did not suffer any serious, life-threatening or altering injuries.

"The offender was white, aged about 40, with fair hair and glasses. He wore standard walking gear, a hat and a 'snood'."

Speaking about those travelling to the Peak District in the warm weather, the force tweeted: 'What a lovely day! The perfect day to drive up into the Peak District for a walk, bike ride, climb or horse ride, isn't it? No, actually it isn't.

"We're seeing a lot of confusion over whether people are allowed to travel to the Peaks to undertake daily exercise while the Government are asking us to stay at home.

"While we have this fantastic space in our county, right now is not the time to be using it.

"Daily exercise should be taken locally to your home. Under government guidance all travel is limited to essential travel only."

Anyone with information about the assault should contact Derbyshire Police via their website, Facebook or Twitter, and quote crime ref 20*157808.

"This is to help ensure that our emergency services aren't put under even more pressure during this time.

"Should you trip, fall or have a road traffic accident while you are travelling to, or are out in the Peaks, then this will add additional pressure to an already stretched service."

The killer bug has claimed 465 lives in the UK so far.

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