A 12-year-old boy was reportedly robbed by a masked gang over the weekend - before have-a-go heroes came to his rescue.

Aron Sandor was walking in Colchester Castle Park with a friend when the incident occurred on Sunday.

The pair were approached by a group of teenagers believed to have been between 15 and 16-years-old.

Janos Sandor, Aron’s father, said five older boys surrounded his son and although Aron tried to get away, he had not been able to do so.

Gazette:

He added: “They pushed him down on the bench - he tried to say no.

"The other boy’s mother [had seen] this group of youngsters around the corner putting balaclavas on.

“She was far away with other siblings next to her, so was a little slower getting there.

"When she saw what happened, she screamed and said: ‘Don’t take anything from my son’.

“A young couple stepped in first and asked if the boys were okay. Because these two things happened, the guys decided to run away."

After a few minutes Mr Sandor, who says the crooks stole money from the youngsters, arrived at the scene before speaking to the police about what happened.

“I was driving up and down for another hour – I could have spotted them," he said.

“They wanted to take his necklace, shoes and phone from both of them.

"One was wearing a balaclava- it was five boys and three girls. One had a black electric scooter.

“While the boys were doing their business, the girls were watching out.”

Gazette:

Mark Goacher, Colchester councillor for Castle ward, has been left upset by the attack.

He said: “Obviously, I’m very sorry that this has happened. It can be very concerning when this happens to children.

“If anyone has descriptions of these characters, please pass them onto police so we can get them caught.”

“Castle Park should be a safe space for children. It’s a very urban ward – they need the green space to play football. It should be a safe space for children.”