RAM raiders are being hunted after smashing their way into a family-owned cycle hire business in a transit van and stealing bikes worth around £20,000.

The devasated owners of Dean Forest Cycles in Parkend said the front of their New Road premises looked like the scene of an explosion after yesterday’s 2.20am raid (Tuesday, November 6), with debris everywhere.

Police later stopped the van used in the raid with a stinger device in Gloucester and recovered several bikes, as two raiders escaped on foot.

It was a second blow in just three months for the business, which was due to install bespoke steel roller doors next week following a £6,000 raid there last August.

“It’s a scene of utter devestation, with the front of the store completely destroyed,” said shocked Dean Cycles owner Angela Clayton. “The only way to describe it is it looks like a bomb has gone off.

“They’ve completely wrecked the front, with parts of the main door and shelving blown all over the bikes inside.

“It’s so upsetting – we’ve worked so hard as a family business, and this happens.

“We were burgled in the summer and were waiting for the steel shuttering next week, but the raiders have hit us again.

“We’ve been told by the police that they smashed right into the front with a stolen van, and the airbag may have gone off when they were stopped, so hopefully they might have some DNA from the vehicle,” she added.

She said the burglars had stolen about £20,000 worth of high-end suspension demo and new Marin, Transition and Ghost bikes, with a couple of electric bikes, costing between £1,500 and £3,500.

“The alarm rang through to our house, which is about a mile away, and my husband Nigel was there in a couple of minutes to find a scene of absolute chaos, with the front of the building completely pulled off and bikes missing,” added Angela.

“The van used was damaged and it sounds like the police picked it up on cameras and were able to chase and stop it, so we’re hoping to get the bikes back and the burglars caught.

“We’re a family business who have been here for seven years. We were hit in August, and it looks like the burglars have waited for us to restock.

“It’s absolutely gutting, as the new steel roller doors were only days away and they’ve struck just before they were put in. It’s unbelievably bad luck.”

Only last year, a gang got clean away with £70,000 worth of bikes from a demo event at Cannop Cycle Centre. No one has ever been charged with the crime.

And Angela said: “Sadly, high-end bikes are a target and with the Forest being such a major centre for cycling, that’s why the criminals come here.

“What they tend to do is strip stolen high-end bikes down for parts so they can’t be traced.

“Hopefully we’ve got our bikes back, but I don’t know how we’re going to board the building up overnight. We might have to stay here. It’s devestating, but we hope to reopen by the weekend and our cafe is undamaged and open for business.”

Gloucestershire Police said officers responded immediately and had quickly “identified the suspect vehicle from a thorough search of the surrounding area.”

A spokeswoman said: “The white Ford transit van failed to stop for officers, but during the pursuit which followed a stinger device was used, bringing the vehicle to a halt near Westgate Island in Gloucester where it collided with a parked car.

“The two occupants, believed to be male, made off on foot and have not yet been located.

“Investigating officers would like to hear from anyone who saw any suspicious vehicles or has information which would help to identify

the offenders,” she added.

Inspector Andrew Hodgetts, local Forest of Dean commander, said: “This was excellent work by our officers who responded immediately to the call and successfully traced the offending vehicle and recovered the stolen property.”

Anyone with information is aske to call 101 quoting incident number 26 of November 6.