Mounted police have been patrolling Shipley town centre for the first time after a spate of cashpoint robberies.

Two officers on horseback targeted the area in a bid to deter the thieves who prey on shoppers drawing out money.

And police on motorcycles were continuing the high-profile patrol today.

The robbers have struck twice at bank cashpoints in the town centre on Friday afternoons.

People getting out hundreds of pounds for the weekend have been pushed to the ground and had their money snatched from the machine.

And there have been a number of pick-pocketing incidents in shops in the area.

Mounted police were also patrolling the Moorhead area of Shipley and Saltaire after an increased number of house burglaries. Inspector Alan Brown, of Eccleshill Police, said: "We have mounted a high visibility patrol in a bid to try and deter these robbers.

"They always seem to strike on a Friday lunchtime when people are drawing out large amounts of money for the weekend.

"They use quite a bit of force and push their victims to the ground before running off with their cash."

He added: "Mounted patrols are a way of exercising the horses at the same time as targeting certain areas of need. Hopefully anybody intending to commit a crime will think twice when they see the police doing very noticeable patrols."

Police are treating the thefts as separate incidents but are not ruling out the possibility that they are connected. One robber who struck at a cash point In Otley Road last Friday was described as male, 5ft 10in, average build with dark, short hair, wearing grey blue jeans and a grey jumper.

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