A Lancashire man was robbed of takings from a church collection as he walked to pay them into the bank.
It happened at about 1.30pm on 3 October 2011 as the 66-year-old man walked down Holt Street, in Orrell towards his bank.
The man had a small amount of cash that was collected the previous Sunday from the Tontine Methodist Church, and was on his way to pay the money in.
As he was walking down Holt Street, he saw three men on the corner with St James Road talking loudly.
The 66-year-old man was then grabbed from behind and was confronted by two of the three men, one of whom snatched the cash which was in a bag and started shouting 'money money money'. One of the other men then punched the victim in the head.
The trio then fled up St James Road towards Georges Terrace and out of sight.
Two of the men were described as white, in their late teens or early 20s, about 5ft 10in tall, of a slim build and wearing black tracksuit tops with the hoods pulled up. The third was also white, of a slim build, about 5ft 10in tall and wearing a dark t-shirt with a grey tracksuit top tied around his waist.
Police are now appealing to anyone with information to come forward.
Police Constable Lynsey Watson, from the Priority Crime Team at Wigan, said: "This attack has left the man with an injury to his jaw. Not only that, he is also understandably shaken up at being assaulted when he was simply trying to pay in money from the church's collection.
"It is an utterly senseless, needless and cowardly attack and has also robbed the church of vital money they need.
"These offenders have not just targeted this man but also the whole community.
"I would therefore appeal to anyone who witnessed what happened, or saw these men hanging around the area, or even has overheard some gossip that could be crucial to our investigation, to come forward."
Anyone with information should call police on 0161 856 5308 or the independent charity Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.
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