A teenager reportedly had his coat stolen and was threatened with "knives" and "a machete".
Police received a report of an incident on Martins Lane in Wallasey on Saturday, December 18 at around 6.50pm.
It was reported the teenager had his coat stolen by a group of three boys.
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The boys were reported to have approached the victim on Grosvenor Street before asking for his coat. They then followed him to Martins Lane, assaulted him and threated him with weapons.
The group was then reported to have stolen his coat and run away down Martin’s Lane in the direction of Egremont.
Two of the suspects are described as carrying kitchen knives and one was described as carrying a machete.
There is no suggestion the knives were used, but the victim was hit on the head by one of the offenders and suffered minor injuries. He was extremely shaken by the incident.
The three suspects are described as around 5ft, 10in tall and wearing black balaclavas. Two were wearing all black clothing and one, who appeared to have long brown hair, was wearing a silver Zanetti jacket.
The stolen coat is described as a medium men’s black Parajumper Gobi bomber jacket, which retails for around £850.
CCTV, house-to-house and forensic enquiries are being carried out and anyone with any information is asked to contact police.
Detective Inspector Darren Taylor said: “This was an appalling incident leaving a young man injured, fortunately not more seriously, and we are determined to find those responsible and put them before the courts.
“We have unfortunately in recent weeks seen the catastrophic consequences of knife crime on Merseyside. We simply will not stand by and allow people to carry knives and threaten the safety of themselves and others.
“We are committed to removing knives from our streets and putting the people prepared to carry them before the courts.
“Day in day out we carry out stop searches, warrants and open land searches to locate knives and ensure those who store, carry and use them are brought to justice.
“The public’s help is vital in ensuring we target our activity where people in our communities tell us there are issues.
"We rely on members of the public coming forward with information about such incidents to keep our streets safer.
“If you were in the Wallasey area on Saturday evening and saw anything or anyone suspicious then please come forward. Similarly, if you were driving in the area and have dashcam footage then please review it and if you see anything let us know.
“Tell us what you know about this incident and we’ll take positive action to remove those who use weapons to cause fear and harm in our communities from our streets.”
Anyone who witnessed the incident or who has any information is asked to contact @MerPolCC on Twitter or ‘Merseyside Police Contact Centre’ on Facebook or call 101 with reference 21000874149.
You can also call 101 or Crimestoppers, anonymously on 0800 555 111, or their online form at https://crimestoppers-uk.org/give-information/forms/give-informat ion-anonymously.
