An Amazon delivery driver sustained a head injury when he was attacked in Richmond Road Parkstone at around 11.30am on Friday 2 April.

The driver had stopped outside of Waitrose when he was approached by a black man in a baseball cap who asked him for a cigarette.

As the victim went to get one, he saw two other men at the rear of the van. He went to confront them and saw that they were attempting to take a large bag of parcels from the vehicle.

The victim was struck on the head by a white plastic baton. However, he was able to grab the bag of parcels and two of the men made off toward Ashley Road, with the third heading in the opposite direction.

Police were contacted later that day and the victim attended hospital for treatment to his head injury. He has since been released from hospital.

The man with the baseball cap is described as black, around five feet eleven inches tall and with a very round face. The other two men are both described as black and were wearing black coats.

Detective Sergeant Karen Penn, of Dorset Police’s Priority Crime Team, said, “I would urge anyone who witnessed and suspicious activity in the area, or who may have captured anything of relevance on home CCTV or dashcam footage, to please contact us.

“I would also like to take this opportunity to urge delivery drivers to keep their doors locked wherever possible when they are not in their vehicles and to remain vigilant.”

Anyone with information is asked to contact Dorset Police at www.dorset.police.uk, via email 101@dorset.pnn.police.uk or by calling 101, quoting occurrence number 55210052140. Alternatively, to stay 100 per cent anonymous, contact the independent charity Crimestoppers online at Crimestoppers-uk.org or call Freephone 0800 555 111.