A MAN has spoken of his horror after three hooded thugs threw him to the floor, stole his credit cards and broke his leg with an iron bar.

Andrew Cuttriss-Curtis, 61, was walking through Southend in the evening when the terrifying attack took place on Pier Hill.

Mr Cuttriss-Curtis had been to collect his bike, which he had left locked up in the town centre the previous day due to heavy rain, when he noticed three hooded men following him.

He attempted to speed up to get away from them, but they grabbed him from behind, forcing him to the floor.

The thugs took his wallet from his coat pocket, taking out the credit cards and demanding his pin number.

Mr Cuttriss-Curtis, of Marine Avenue, Westcliff, said: “They first shouted ‘police, get down on the ground’ and pushed me to the floor.

“They kept shoving me into the ground and telling me to give them my pin number.

“It was near the casino, I kept calling out for help, but because it was so quiet there was no one outside, no one could hear me.

“I was so shocked and disoriented, I gave them an old pin number as it was the first thing that came into my head. One of them then walked over to a cashpoint nearby while the other two stayed with me.

“When the pin didn’t work, the man came back to me and was punching me and shouting, so I had to give it up.

“I then saw one of them draw something that looked like an iron bar out of his pocket, and he smashed it into my leg, then they all ran off.

“I was left alone in the street, my leg was in agony.

“I was desperately crawling along towards the casino, calling for help, when someone finally came around the corner and saw me.”

He said it will be months before he can walk again.

Police and ambulance services attended the scene, and Mr Cuttriss-Curtis was taken to Southend Hospital with a broken femur bone and multiple bruises and cuts.

He has been in hospital since the incident, which took place on November 25 at around 9.25pm, and was set to be discharged over the weekend.

An Essex Police spokesman said: "We are investigating a robbery in Southend High Street after a man was attacked at around 9.20pm on Sunday November 25.

"The 61-year-old victim was approached from behind by three men and punched in the head.

"He was punched a number of times and they demanded his credit card and PIN.

"The men, who were described as being black, ran from the scene towards Santander.

"We attended the scene and carried out a search. Enquiries are ongoing to find them."

Call Southend CID with information on 101 quoting reference number 42/172586/18, or Crimestoppers on 0800 555111.