Portland residents have been left shocked after a man was robbed at knife point in the middle of the day. 

Concerned residents have expressed their disbelief after a man in his 50s was robbed at knifepoint when walking along a footpath off Channel View Road at Easton.

Victoria Clifton, who has lived on Channel View Road for 30 years, said she was shocked such an attack had taken place. 

“It’s very rare we get any incidents on our road. I hope it’s a one off. It’s very quiet here and we don’t have much trouble on Portland,” she said. 

Mrs Clifton said the attackers must have been very desperate to carry out an attack in the middle of the day. 

The victim was attacked by two men, one armed with a knife and the other with a piece of wood at 12.37pm on Monday, August 14.

One offender held the knife to the victim’s face and neck and demanded money. The victim handed over a small quantity of cash.

The offenders demanded the victim’s keys and phones but the victim refused to hand them over and he was struck with a piece of wood. They then fled the scene toward Clarence Road before the victim raised the alarm.

A woman, whose elderly mother lives on the road, said the attack was troubling as her mother lived alone and was often forgetful. 

Co-ordinator of the YMCA Portland Red Triangle Club in Reforne Amanda Spencer, said the attack was very worrying. 

“It’s not good. It concerns me as it’s just around the corner and I’m often here on my own,” she said. 

She said she normally cycled down the footpath at 12:45pm on a Monday to do her weekly shopping, but had luckily taken her car for a change this week.

"A lot of elderly people use the footpath to cut through to get to Tesco which is concerning.

"We’ve not had anything like this before on Portland. My aunt’s house backs on to the footpath and they’ve had a couple of noisy youths on the path but nothing violent," she said. 

Mrs Spencer said she had grown up on Portland but had seen a change in recent years. 

“Everybody used to know everybody, but it’s changed with a lot of people moving here from the cities,” she said.

She said despite the attacks violent nature she would continue to use the footpath. 

One woman, who lives on Channel View Road and did not wish to be named said: “I’ve lived here 23 years and my husband is born and bred on the island. It’s a very safe place to live. I use the footpath all the time and have never felt scared,” she said. 

Councillor for Tophill East David Hawkins said: “It’s pretty awful that Portland should be suffering this kind of thing."

He added that on the same day as the attack his car had been vandalised and petrol stolen from the tank. 

“I haven’t heard of anything like this happening for a very long time. It does appear things are getting worse but I don’t think Portland will be any worse affected than anywhere else. This is a poor taste of the future,” he said. 

Police are appealing for the public’s help to trace the robbers. 

The first offender is described as white, 6ft tall, of muscular build and approximately 19 years old. He wore a blue zipped up hooded top with the hood up, blue baggy denim jeans, white Nike trainers and had letters tattooed on each knuckle on his right hand. He spoke with an eastern European accent.

The second offender is described as white, approximately 19 years old, of slight build and was wearing a blue hooded top with yellow writing across the chest area and the hood up. He also wore blue denim jeans. He spoke with a local accent.

Detective Constable Siobhan Lovering, of Weymouth CID, said: “This was a frightening ordeal for the victim who thankfully did not sustain serious injuries.

“The incident took place during the day and I would appeal to anyone who was in the Channel View Road or Clarence Road area of Portland at the relevant time and saw anything suspicious to please contact Dorset Police.

“I am particularly keen to trace an elderly man who walked along the footpath shortly before the incident and said hello to the victim.”