A TEENAGER has appeared in court charged in connection with a string of armed robberies in Orford.

A total of five robberies were reported in the area on Friday, January 25, and Saturday, January 26 – in which a gang were alleged to have threatened a number of victims with a meat cleaver.

And two teens aged 17 and 16, who cannot be named for legal reasons, have now been charged in connection with four street robberies on the Saturday in question.

One, aged 16, appeared in Warrington Magistrates' Court today, Wednesday giving no indication of a plea, while the other will appear tomorrow, Thursday.

They are due to appear in Liverpool Crown Court next month, given the serious nature of the charges.

Cheshire Police were alerted to the first incident shortly after 9.30pm on the Friday night, January 26.

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They were called to separate attacks on St Peter’s Way and Battersby Lane; wasteland near to Battersby Lane; Back Forshaw Street; outside the Albion pub on Battersby Lane and Haydock Street close to the town centre.

In all cases the victim was threatened with a meat clever or a machete, according to officers, who said the nature of them meant they were being linked.

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Small amounts of cash were also stolen from the victims, along with cash cards and mobile phones.

The teens were also charged with three counts of fraud for using the stolen cash cards afterwards.