THE leader of a campaign group among petrol forecourt stations is recovering after he was mowed down by a hit and run thief.

Ironically, Trevor Davis, who runs the Hollymead filling station at Park Lane, Guisborough, and is chairman of Forecourt Watch, predicted someone would get hurt during a fuel theft - little realising it would be him.

Forecourt Watch is a pioneering scheme run by 200 petrol stations throughout Teesside and Cleveland Police, which aims to reduce the incidences of motorists driving off without paying for their petrol.

In the past, Mr Davis has said the campaign is important because he always thought that someone would get hurt during a petrol getaway.

And on Monday afternoon, Mr Davis became a victim himself.

He suffered an injured leg as he tried to stop a man driving off without paying for petrol.

The incident was caught on the petrol station's CCTV footage, which has been handed over to Cleveland Police for their investigations.

Anyone with information should call the police on (01642) 326326.