A YOUNG boy knocked to the ground by a bullying thug who then stole his bike, has emptied his money box to help raise the cash for a reward.

Karl Swire, aged eight, from Radcliffe, was so devastated by the theft of his bike, that he has contributed £10 towards a £100 reward to get it back.

The rest of the money has come from his family, who are appealing to the public to help trace the thief.

Karl was on his bike outside the forecourt of a row of shops on Moss Shaw Way, Radcliffe, at 5.45pm on Saturday, when the attack happened.

The Radcliffe Primary School pupil was holding onto the bike, when the thug, aged 15 to 20, grabbed it. When Karl went to get his bike back, the older boy kicked him to the floor and rode off.

The mountain bike is a 21-inch Trial Breaker 3. It is silver with purple lettering and handlebars. It has a purple and white water bottle. The thief was white, about 5ft 7in, with dark collar length hair, of slim to medium build, and wearing a black sweatshirt and blue jeans. He was carrying a red and black Head bag on his back, which had green lettering.

Karl's grandfather, Mr Seaward Swire, said: "This thief needs to be stopped. It could have turned very nasty, particularly if Karl had banged his head badly on the ground. Anything could have happened. It makes you wonder what kind of lad could do this."

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