TWO men have been arrested in connection with a series of robberies in Accrington.

The men aged 28 and 32 were arrested last night and are currently in custody.

It comes after police have recovered a plastic sword which is thought to have been linked to the offences.

A spokeman for Lancashire Police claimed that 'investigations are continuing'.

Detective Inspector Rach Higson said: “These are serious offences which I appreciate will have caused some concern in the local community.

"We have a team of officers making enquiries and detectives are working closely with the neighbourhood policing team to proactively identify and locate the offenders.

“I would appeal to anyone with any information to contact us on 101, or independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.”

The first robbery happened at shortly before 1.30pm when a man was mugged close to the Asda store on Hyndburn Road by two men, one of whom was armed with a knife.

Police said the second robbery took place near Lancaster Avenue shortly before 2pm.

The third robbery happened at 6.20pm on Owen Street at the junction of Belgarth Road.

The fourth incident happened at around 8.15pm when a man was approached at Platt Social Club 

Patrols have been stepped up in the area.