‘Help catch our son’s robbers’, say Kettering parents

Ray Page, 40, has appealed to the public and has put up a reward of £500 after the incident on the Ise Lodge estate earlier this month.

The chemical compounder said he was shocked and angry when his son told him he had been robbed by someone with a knife and that he was scared of what could have happened.

He said: “When you have kids you worry about them no matter how old they are.

“Things like this make you scared to let them out of your sight.”

At about 11pm on February 16 Ray’s son, who did not want to be named, was near Gleneagles Close on his way home from a party with friends when two masked offenders approached them and demanded they hand over ‘whatever they had’.

Two of the victim’s friends ran away but the 16-year-old, who is currently awaiting an operation on his knee, was unable to.

The victim gave the attackers £5 but when he got out his phone to try to call one of his friends the robbers returned, pulled out a large knife and held it to the boy’s stomach.

They forced the boy to give them his phone, after which he managed to get away. When he got home he found blood on his jumper from a cut to his finger.

The boy’s mum Angela, a 42-year-old healthcare assistant, said her son had not been himself since.

She said: “You’d think three boys would be safe but I do not think that any more.

“It just eats you up inside.

“My son has not been himself. He barely left the house in the half-term and he’s really quiet.”

Ray also made a plea to any youngster who thinks it’s acceptable to carry a knife on our streets.

He said: “Is it worth it?

“For what they [his son’s attackers] got, is it really worth heading down that path?

“It will put you on a slippery slope that will be hard to get back up.”

Police said the robbers were driving a small silver car, possibly a Corsa.

Since the incident three 18-year-old men from Kettering have been arrested on suspicion of robbery. All three have been released on police bail.

Ray added that he is offering a reward of £500 for anyone who can provide information that leads to a charge of robbery.

He said: “Someone has got to know something. Please tell the police.

“How would they like it if it was one of their family members, their brother, their son, their mum?”

Witnesses or anyone with information should contact police on 101 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555111.