A group of travellers wrecked a multi-million pound police helicopter
which was being used to spy on their site.
The gang used axes to smash the £5million aircraft, after they
leapt over a 4ft wall surrounding Surrey Police force’s helipad
at Fairoaks airport, near Woking in Surrey.
After threatening staff working in the operations room, they set about
wrecking the helicopter, smashing six of its windows and causing tens
of thousands of pounds worth of damage.
The incident happened at 10pm yesterday after weeks of aerial surveillance
on the travellers’ site, where detectives believe stolen goods
have been hidden.
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Officers were getting ready to raid the site after collecting evidence
they had filmed from the air.
A police source said last night: 'The gipsies were furious because
they kept getting buzzed by the helicopter.
'But no one expected this level of violence.
'Before a raid is conducted we will observe the criminals from the
air. That way we get an idea what we are likely to find, identify
suspects and locate entrances and exits. Maybe we got too low.'
