AN attempted raid on a garage by a man claiming to have a gun was thwarted when the 73-year-old owner struck the would-be robber across the head with the till.

Gordon Hancock who runs Hancock?s Garage, Hatherleigh in partnership with his son, Chris, was taking the till from an office in the garage to the forecourt office at 6.30am last Friday when a man jumped out from behind a parked car.

?He said ?I have a gun in my pocket ? let me have your money!?

?Dad bashed the till across his head spilling the money across the forecourt and the man ran off,? said Chris Hancock.

?You don?t expect this sort of thing at that time of day. Someone must have known he was here on his own.?

Mr Hancock said his father was a ?very brave man? to have done what he did.

?I was shocked to think this happened in Hatherleigh. You never imagine it will happen on your doorstep.

?The garage is tucked away in the middle of town out of the way so that lots of people don?t even know it is here.?

He said his father is 6ft 2ins and very fit and active. ?But things could have happened differently and he could be lying in the road.?

Mr Hancock said his father, who went across to the Post Office for help, was not initially shocked by the incident ? but he did suffer from shock shortly after when the reality of what had happened hit him.

?I?m taking steps to ensure nothing like this happens here again. My father is an early morning person and doesn?t want to change his ways but he will have to come in later when the rest of the staff get here.?

The proprietor of the Post Office, Raymond Taylor, comforted the shocked septuagenarian when he came to the shop for help.

?I stayed with him until his son came. He is elderly but he has got some spirit. He is a very kind man with a good heart.

?I stayed with him to give him moral support as we all would do in this community.?

The police are looking for a white male, possibly in his late teens, about 5ft 4ins tall and of slim build. He was wearing a blue or black anorak with the hood pulled up. He ran off in the direction of Market Square.

DC Dave Elliott, of Tavistock CID, said the youth may have suffered a facial or head injury during the incident.

He is interested in speaking to two potential witnesses who may have some useful information.

Two vehicles were seen parked near the newspaper shop ? a white van with a male driver in his 30s-40s, balding and wearing a grey sweatshirt, blue track bottoms and trainers, and the driver of a gold coloured Range Rover or LandRover Discovery.

Anyone who can help is asked to contact DC Elliott at Tavistock CID on 08705 777444 quoting crime reference JO 03/174.