TRIBUTES have been paid to a popular company boss who died a “hero” after bravely stepping in to protect his friends during an armed robbery.

Timothy Smith suffered a fatal head injury when he was pushed to the ground by two masked thugs outside a house in The Drive, Hullbridge, on Sunday evening.

The 57-year-old had earlier been drinking in The Anchor pub, in Ferry Road, with his wife and another couple. He was just a few hundred metres from his own home in nearby Alfreda Avenue.

Mr Smith, who owned building suppliers Doors, Floors and Stairparts, in London Road, Pitsea, was knocked unconscious after hitting his head on a low wall on the driveway as he grappled with the raiders.

He was then dragged inside the house where the callous thieves demanded cash from the rest of the group, before making off.

Mr Smith died on Monday after doctors at the specialist head injury unit at Addenbrooke’s Hospital, in Cambridgeshire, fought to save his life.

Police have launched a manhunt for the robbers, who were wearing balaclavas and gloves, but no arrests have been made.

Friend Brian Sangwin, 69, of Keswick Avenue, Hullbridge, said Mr Smith was a “very supportive” member of the sports and social club and was well-known in the village.

He said: “Tim was just a very nice, genuine guy. You would find it hard to say a bad word about him.

“He was certainly a well-known figure in Hullbridge. It’s difficult to put into words, it’s such a shock to us all.

“I know that he wouldn’t have stood back and let anybody have a go at his friends, he would have been a hero. I’m guessing that whatever happened on the night he was standing up for the people who were around him.

“He would have stepped forward, I can picture him doing it now.”

Michael Carrol, 43, owner of Ornate Plaster and Fireplaces, next to Mr Smith’s family-run firm, said he was a “lovely bloke.”

He said: “Stepping in to protect his friends seems like something he would do. I just can’t believe what’s happened.

“I was only speaking to him on Saturday, he would always stop and have a chat. Then on Monday a sign went up in the shop. I just assumed it was a family funeral.”

The sign in the window of Mr Smith’s shop advised customers it was closed due to a “family emergency”.

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Dave Ketteridge, 30, a music promoter from Southend, said he knew Mr Smith through his love of performing Elvis Presley songs at music events in Hullbridge.

He said: “Tim was a big character and he was a quite a big part of the Hullbridge social scene.

“He used to get up on the jam nights and fancied himself as a bit of an Elvis Presley. God knows how many times I heard him sing Blue Suede Shoes!

“It is a real shame, it’s a terrible tragedy. Many, many people knew him in Hullbridge.”

Regulars at The Anchor were said to be in shock. Staff told the Echo yesterday they were still too upset to speak.

Family members took to Facebook to say they were “devastated” by Mr Smith’s death. They declined to comment further.

A neighbour of Mr Smith, who asked not to be named, said the tragedy had soched residents. She said: “Tim was a very popular man, everybody knew him.”

Other friends also paid tribute online as news spread of his death.

John Ruggles said: “Very sad, honourable gentleman trying to help. Thoughts are with the family and friends.”

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‘Robbers knew what they were after and took it’

THE group of friends who were subjected to a vicious armed robbery leading to Tim Smith’s death were deliberately targeted by a pair of men who “knew what they were after”, according to a police chief.

Chief Insp Glen Westley, district commander for Castle Point and Rochford, has sought to reassure residents living in and around Hullbridge that they are not at risk of further attacks.

He said that Sunday’s incident was not a random street robbery, urging neighbours not be concerned that it could happen to them.
Mr Westley spoke to the Echo to ask residents to be “alert but not alarmed.” He said that officers will be carrying out reassurance patrols in the area as much as possible.

He said: “The circumstances of the job are that these people clearly knew what was in the house - a certain amount of money.

“They knew why they were there, there was stuff inside the house that they wanted. This wasn’t random.

“These people picked that house and that group of people for a reason, that is the information that we have got.

“This was not a street mugging, they were not out waiting for people to return from the pub to mug them.

“From what the witnesses have said about what happened in the house and the questions that the men asked, they knew what they came for and they left with it.”

During the incident, Tim Smith, his wife and another couple were forced into the house in The Drive, Hullbridge.

It is understood that Mr Smith was dragged inside unconscious after he was hit and fell onto a wall, smashing his head.

Inside, the robbers made demands and an undisclosed amount of cash was handed over. 

Mr Westley added: “The chances of these guys coming back is very remote.
“This isn’t a gang roaming around Hullbridge. Be alert but not alarmed.

“If anyone has any concerns, or information that could help with our investigation, I would encourage them to speak to our officers.”

Detectives are appealing for witnesses or anyone with information in relation to the murder investigation to contact 101 or email scdappeals@essex.pnn.police.uk

They can also contact independent crime-fighting charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 or via crimestoppers-uk.org

Fear and anxiety in street after gun robbery

RESIDENTS of the quiet residential street now at the centre of a murder investigation say they are still in shock over the events of Sunday night.

While not exactly leafy, The Drive, in Hullbridge, is an unlikely choice for a late-night armed raid - with its treacherously uneven surfaces and single track, dead-end road making a quick getaway tricky.

Police believe the botched robbery that left businessman Tim Smith with a fatal head injury was a “targeted” attack and other residents should not fear a repeat.

But that has not stopped an uneasy feeling gripping people living in the area.

Sylvia Souster, 75, has lived in the street for 52 years. She said the armed raid is the most serious crime ever committed there.

She said: “I am a bit unsettled by it but I have been reassured by what the police have said about it being an isolated incident.

“When that sort of thing happens on your doorstep it is unnerving. I didn’t see or hear anything at the time, all I heard was the helicopter going over.

“I’m not even aware of there being many burglaries lately. There have been one or two over the years.

“Apart from a couple of car accidents on Ferry Road this is the worst thing that’s happened in my lifetime.”

Neighbour Brenda Stuart, 84, said she has also been left feeling “anxious.”

She said: “I am a little bit nervous. The police have been round but they didn’t really say what happened, they just asked if I heard anything.”

A resident of The Walk, which runs off The Drive, said he had been away at the weekend and returned home to find his wife frightened.

He said: “Nothing really surprises me anymore but my wife was really unnerved by the whole thing.

“I just hope they catch the people who did it, and quickly.”