Ref. 24740-70Crime One: Police are still hunting the arsonists responsible for torching Old Town's historic Locarno and Town Hall building.

The roof and interior of the property, which looked set to be turned into a caf and restaurant complex, were destroyed in the blaze, which broke out during the afternoon of May 18.

Around 50 firefighters tackled the blaze, which took around 24 hours to extinguish.

Crime two: Tyres slashed

The culprits behind a spate of tyre slashings in Old Town remain at large.

Residents in The Mall were left fuming when they awoke to find 140 tyres on 68 vehicles had been slashed with a playing dart. The vandals caused damage put at more than £7,000 last Wednesday night.

In a similar incident, tyres on vehicles in Clifton Street, Exmouth Street and Goddard Avenue were slashed recently. Three youths, aged between 15 and 17, were later arrested in connection with these attacks. They are currently on police bail.

Crime three: Terrifying ordeal for postmaster

Village postmaster David Belson was held at gunpoint during a terrifying raid.

Mr Belson, 46, was alone in the post office in South Marston when three men burst in.

The father-of-two had a gun shoved against his back before being made to open a safe at around 1.20pm on August 11.

The men got away with £7,500 in cash and cigarettes.

The men, who were all black, are believed to have driven off in a dark coloured Ford Scorpion.

Crime four: Trailer packed with envelopes explodes

This is the result of an arson attack which destroyed a £60,000 lorry trailer packed with envelopes.

The trailer, owned by DJB Haulage of Radstock near Bath, exploded into a fireball which sent flames 50ft into the air.

The blaze broke out at 10.45pm on Wednesday, September 10, while the trailer was parked in a lay-by in Lady Lane, Blunsdon, near the Abbey Stadium. The driver had driven off in the cab to have a shower at a friend's house at the time.

Crime five: Stolen car used in raid

Thieves used a stolen car to smash their way into a garage in South Marston exactly a year after it was hit by robbers armed with an iron bar.

In the latest incident, thieves caused damage put at £20,000 when they smashed their way into the Esso service station on the A420 at South Marston.

Offenders stole £300 worth of cigarettes during the raid, which happened in the early hours of Monday, September 8.

Police believe the car, a Vauxhall Astra, had been stolen from the village hours before the incident.

The vehicle was used to smash the glass frontage of the station.

Police say the raiders would have snatched more goods, but were scared off when the alarm sounded.

In a bizarre twist, the station was hit exactly a year before the raid.

Police are still hunting robbers who burst in at 11pm on September 8, 2002.

The lone cashier was assaulted with an iron bar and sustained severe bruising and cuts when he challenged two raiders. The men escaped with a small quantity of cash in a stolen Vauxhall Omega, which was driven off in the Oxford direction.

One man had dark hair, and was of heavy build, the other was either Asian or of a mixed race.