Police are asking for help from the public to locate the ‘violent and dangerous’ attacker who killed a pensioner in his own home in Cheltenham on Monday.
68-year-old Charles Anthony Swift (known as Tony) of Mendip House, ambulance Mendip Road in the town, was found with severe head injuries at the address on Monday afternoon.
Paramedics treated Mr Swift at the address but sadly he was pronounced dead shortly after.
Police believe Tony may have known his attacker as there was no sign of forced entry to the house but say the brutality of the attack is shocking.
Senior Investigating Officer, Detective Inspector Richard Pegler said “Mr Swift was attacked at Monday lunch time. He was struck multiple times over the head with a blunt instrument and his injuries were horrific.
“For the sake of Tony’s family we’re asking that anyone with information comes forward straight away.
“There was no sign of forced entry to his flat and we suspect Tony may have been targeted for a reason but we’re still trying to determine what that reason was. He had a lot of visitors to his home and we would urge those people to come forward to speak with us.
“We also believe the offender would have been heavily bloodstained. Specifically we need to hear from anyone who saw anyone on the day with bloody clothing, anyone who has found bloody clothing or anything that could be the murder weapon.
“The victim’s mobile phone was also missing from his house – have you seen a discarded phone?
“We are concerned because potentially a violent and dangerous person is on our streets and they need to be caught as soon as possible.
“Anyone who can help should call 101 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 11, quoting incident number 204 of October 26.”
Detectives are continuing a number of inquiries while uniformed officers will also be patrolling the area to help provide reassurance to the community.