As we recently reported, crimes against youths carrying gadgets are on the up in the UK. Out of those crimes, theft of mobiles phones and MP3 players are among the most common. Last week a 22-year-old man in Reading was mugged in the street for his wallet and his iPod.

The muggers attacked the man, punching him in the face as he listed to his iPod, before stealing it and fleeing.

The incident happened on Palmerstone Road, Earley, in Reading. The man was listening to music as he made his way along the road, before three men attacked him.

One of the attackers was white, aged 20-25 and was 5ft 11ins - 6f. He punched the man in the face, resulting in him needing stitches in his lip. There were no descriptions released of the other two attackers.

Loddon Valley police force’s Stuart Keys said:

I am keen to speak to anyone who was in this area of Earley in the early hours of Thursday or anyone who saw three men acting suspiciously in the area.

We are carrying out house to house inquiries in the area and posting witness leaflets through doors.

This trend of theft against youths for their MP3 players and iPods is becoming more and more common, so anyone using a portable digital media player in the street should be careful and be on the lookout.