A cyclist in his 60s suffered “significant and life-changing” injuries after a rope was tied across a footpath in a Merseyside park.

The incident happened back in April in Mersey Park and police have today released CCTV images of two males who officers believe may be able to assist with the investigation.

The man was cycling through Mersey Park at around 4pm on Monday 21 April when he was struck by a rope which had been tied across a footpath. He suffered life-changing facial injuries and was taken to Arrowe Park Hospital for treatment.

Merseyside Police said it had made extensive witness enquiries and studied CCTV pictures, the force now releasing images of two males who were in the area of the park at the time and may have information which “is vital to our enquiries”.

Detective Sergeant Sheena Ayrton said: “The gentleman who was injured has suffered significant and life-changing injuries and it is vital that we are able to establish the circumstances of what has taken place. I would ask anyone who recognises the males or who has any information which could assist our investigation to get in touch.”

The force added: “Anyone with information should contact Merseyside Police social media desk via X @MerPolCC or on Facebook ‘Merseyside Police Contact Centre’. You can also report information via our website: https://www.merseyside.police.uk/ro/report/ocr/af/how-to-report-a-crime/… call 101 quoting incident reference 25000323336.

“Alternatively, contact the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111, or via their website here: https://crimestoppers-uk.org/give-information/forms/give-information-ano… an emergency always call 999.”

While little more is known about the exact circumstances of this incident, there have been numerous reports of rope, string or wire being strung across routes to deliberately target cyclists in the UK in recent years.

In November, cyclists in Sheffield were warned to “be vigilant” after a dog walker reported finding “a length of wire-filled electric fencing mesh” strung tight and at head height near a popular beauty spot, the homemade trap “clearly intended to do harm”.

Another incident happened in the Rhondda Valley, barbed wire strung across a popular mountain biking route causing cuts to a rider’s throat that needed 17 stitches and left their partner “so glad I’m not planning a funeral right now”.

Tony Roberts “had to unwrap the wire from around his neck”, the trap having been “hidden in a tree line so it couldn’t have been seen”. The 39-year-old was treated by specialist doctors who initially wondered if he would need surgery but fortunately managed to treat the injury with stitches instead.

More recently, a cyclist in North Wales was seriously injured, suffering a concussion, a broken collarbone and three fractured ribs, after being brought down by a wire trap stretched across a bike path. In September 2023, a Berkshire cyclist shared photos of trail “sabotage” on a popular bridleway in the county, a rope and bramble trap laid on the route.

The topic of traps targeting cyclists was thrust into the spotlight during lockdown when columnist Rod Liddle wrote in the Sunday Times that it is “tempting” to stretch piano wire across the road to target cyclists.

Cycling UK complained to the newspaper about the column, saying it was “inflammatory, in seriously poor taste” and condoned criminal act. The Sunday Times responded saying the column was “not intended to be taken seriously”.