Express & Star delivery driver hurt as van stolen
An Express & Star delivery driver was in hospital today after the van he was unloading was stolen in Willenhall.
The 65-year-old driver suffered a fractured shoulder along with cuts and bruises to his head when a man jumped in the front seat of his white Ford Transit and drove off, throwing him to the ground.
He was fetching newspapers from the back of the vehicle in Castle Drive at around 1.05pm yesterday when he was attacked.
A 28-year-old man was arrested at about 6pm yesterday in High Road in Willenhall on suspicion of taking a vehicle without consent and today remained in custody. West Midlands Police spokeswoman Gina Lycett said the victim's condition was "serious but stable" today.
The worker was airlifted to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham after the helicopter landed in the grounds of Pool Hayes secondary school in Castle Drive.
Police cordoned off the car park of the Premier convenience store in Willenhall to carry out investigations.
The van was found 20 minutes later in nearby Ernest Clarke Close. The driver, who gave chase to the thief, suffered a glancing blow from the van, which had branding from the Express & Star's sister paper the Shropshire Star.
Phil Inman, managing director of Express & Star publisher MNA, said: "Our initial focus is on the driver's well being. We hope he makes a rapid recovery."
Police are appealing for information.
