Pc attacked by thugs is quitting

Three thugs attacked a policeman who heads a charity to support the victims of crime, beating and kicking him for 10 minutes - while dozens of rail travellers ignored his cries for help.

Norman Brennan, 42, a constable with the transport police, was set upon by the youths on a platform at Paddington Station - an assault which has made him decide to quit his job.

Pc Brennan said: "I was disgusted. There must have been 150 people at the station, and that included two security men. They just stood and watched. It left me thinking 'I've had enough. It's time to quit.' I've fought many battles for victims of crime. But too often when policemen become victims, they are out on their own."

Pc Brennan, an officer for 23 years, has been director of the Victims of Crime Trust since 1994.

A spokesman for British Transport Police refused to give any details of the attack. Two youths have been arrested.

The assault comes against a backdrop of soaring attacks on police officers. Official figures show that in the 12 months to September 2000, attacks on police leapt by 12 per cent. Statistics released by Scotland Yard in

February showed that street crime leapt by almost 49 per cent in the previous month, compared with January 2001. The number of street robberies in all but two London boroughs rose, and the figures revealed that, in January, there were 6,754 street robberies, compared with 4,520 12 months earlier.

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