Journalists who were tied up by armed raiders at the Peterborough Evening Telegraph have spoken of their terrifying ordeal.

Intruders broke into the Priestgate offices armed with baseball bats and fire extinguishers and attacked the late team that had covered the Peterborough Town/Port Vale football tie.

Photographers David Lowndes, Alan Storer and Adam Fairbrother, and football reporter Alan Swann were threatened, forced to lie face-down on the floor, and then bound hand and foot with electrical cord, during an hour-long ordeal on Tuesday evening.

Deputy chief photographer David, (49), a veteran of 28 years at the Telegraph, and colleague Adam were both kicked several times during the indicent.

The raiders ransacked the building, stealing photographic equipment and AppleMac computers, as well as Adam's own car.

David said: "We had to lie on the floor. You could hear them going through the camera bags. It is not the sort of thing you expect to happen in a city centre office at 11pm.

"The office is like a home to us."

Sports reporter Alan Swann, (38), said: "It was scary. The gang made lots of threats. They were saying they were going to 'cut us'."

Alan Storer, (25) added: "We just heard this almighty crash and they came in. They were wearing hoods and had scarves over their faces. At one point, they threatened to stick something in my stomach."

Adam, (26), said: "I was most scared when we were lying on the floor and all of them were over us, saying they wanted to take one of us away. I'm upset because they've taken camera equipment I've collected over 10 years."

Police are investigating how the gang managed to get past the electronic security system. The four journalists dialled 999 after freeing themselves.

Read yesterday's story about this incident.