Pizza boss feared for his life after flat attack horror
Abdul Rauf Haidari was left in hospital with slash wounds after attack by four armed raiders.
A pizza shop boss told of his horror after being robbed at knifepoint and battered with metal table legs by four armed raiders.
Abdul Rauf Haidari was left in hospital with slash wounds to his hand and injuries to his head, neck and arms following the attack in his flat, above Picasso’s Pizza on Mount Pleasant Road, Wallasey.
The Afghani asylum seeker only set up the business with a partner in June having fled his hometown of Kabul three years ago in the hope of a safer life in the UK.
But now the 28-year-old – known as Rauf – has been left unable to sleep after the robbery and no longer feels safe in his new home.
He says his fiancee, Yasamin, who was planning to move over to live with him from Australia, shares his concerns and is now reluctant to follow him to the area.
Rauf told how he was in his living room on the phone to Yasamin at around 2pm on Saturday afternoon when he saw the four men coming into the room.
He said: “My friend had gone to the shop nearby and left the door on the latch.
“I was on the phone and saw these men coming into the room. I said ‘who are you? Why are you coming into my flat without permission?’
“The next minute one of them threw a can of beer at my face and I blocked it with my arm.
“Then another one kicked through my glass table, smashing it. “They took the metal legs and started hitting me, trying to hit my head. I tried to go over to the window, and one of them came at me with a knife. He put it to my belly and said ‘where is the money?’ I said ‘what money?’
“I tried to take his hand but the knife slashed me three times.
“I thought they were trying to kill me so I climbed out of the window on to the balcony and shouted for help.
“The girls next door heard and called police and the men ran off.
“They took my phone and laptop and maybe other things too, I don’t know yet.”
Rauf, who believes the robbery may be linked to an incident in the pizza shop the night before – when a man tried to take a mobile phone from behind the counter and was ejected – spent the night in hospital but was back working yesterday.
He said: “Since we’ve been here everyone has been so nice. The people in this area are good people.
“They are very friendly and the police and ambulance staff were very good to me too. But I ran away from my country to be safe and now I don’t feel safe here either.”
A spokesman for Merseyside police said three men – aged 19, 44 and 69 – were arrested on suspicion of aggravated burglary in connection with the incident.
All three have been bailed pending further enquiries. The investigation is ongoing and anyone with information can call police on 0151 777 2265 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
Description: Picasso's Pizza and Kebab House on Mount Pleasant Road, Wallasey
