A stolen tractor smashed into a house before a masked gang fled the scene in a getaway car.
Neighbours were forced to evacuate after the vehicle collided with the property on Priory Road, Middlesbrough, at around 1.40am today.
Residents described hearing the tractor and seeing its yellow flashing lights before it drove ‘full throttle’ into the brickwork.
One neighbour said the gang, wearing balaclavas and hoodies, got into a getaway car and fled the scene afterwards.
Police cordoned off the road and several residents were evacuated as a precaution.
Officers remain at the scene, with pictures showing the red Massey Ferguson tractor lodged inside the property.
Detective Chief Inspector John Bonner, from Middlesbrough CID, said: ‘Shortly after 1am on Saturday (May 9) police received reports of a tractor being driven into a house on Priory Road in Middlesbrough.
‘The property is unoccupied therefore no one suffered any injury however neighbouring properties were evacuated as a precaution and will return once it has been deemed safe.
A stolen tractor smashed into a house before a masked gang fled the scene in a getaway car
Neighbours were forced to evacuate after the vehicle smashed into the property on Priory Road, Middlesbrough, at around 1.40am today
Residents described hearing the tractor and seeing its yellow flashing lights before it drove ‘full throttle’ into the brickwork
‘We are currently treating this as deliberate, and a scene is in place while the investigation is ongoing. I’d ask members of the public to avoid the area where possible.
‘Additional patrols will be carried out in the area over the weekend to provide reassurance to the community.
‘I appeal to anyone who has information, dash cam or doorbell footage of the tractor, which was stolen from Yarm, in the run up to it being taken and driven to Middlesbrough, and the damage it did, to please get in touch quoting reference number 087639.
‘You can provide information anonymously by calling Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.’
The North East Ambulance Service confirmed no one required hospital treatment following the incident and crews were later stood down.
A spokesperson said: ‘We were called to an incident on Priory Road, Middlesbrough at 1.40am on 9 May.
‘We dispatched a duty officer and a double-crewed ambulance but were stood down at the scene by our police and fire colleagues.’
