A 15-year-old from Barking who saved up £200 to buy a bike had it stolen just hours after bringing it home.

Zayn Khan, who lives in Upney Lane, had been saving up his pocket money all year to buy a bike for the summer holidays.

Last week, just hours after he’d come home with the new bike, he had it stolen while taking it out for its first test ride.

“I normally go with him but he wanted to take it out on his own and check the gears and test it out,” his father, Jawaid Khan, said.

“He bought it for the summer holidays. He wanted to go round the park and see his friends.”

Zayn rode the bike – a black, 18 inch Carrera Parva from Halfords – to Barking Park, via the entrance near the Royal Oak pub.

When he neared the football courts, he saw three men, one of whom had a crutch.

“They were a lot older than me,” he said in a statement.

“One person came in front of me and two men came from behind. They threw me off the bike and kicked and punched me, so I would stay down.”

The three men beat Zayn while he was on the ground, before fleeing the park.

A witness stayed to look after him while the police arrived, and he was taken home by officers at around 7pm.

A few days later, his father took him to the emergency room at St George’s Hospital because Zayn’s bruises ached so badly.

He was given painkillers and sent home.

“Now he’s scared to go out,” his father said.

“He was really shaken up – he’s crying all the time.

“He’d usually go out to the park on his own to play tennis but what happened is pretty nasty. It’s a shock to him and to us.”

Jawaid said he’s not sure if they’ll buy another bike for Zayn, who’s in Year 10 at Barking Abbey School.

He said: “It’s hard to buy a bike because I’ll have to go with him - he’s a bit scared to go out alone now.

“All I thought was, if it happened to my son then it can happen to somebody else’s.”

Jawaid said he has reported the robbery to the police and is awaiting a crime reference number from them.