Three men left bin workers seriously injured in a terrifying tool and gun attack on a stoke road

A quiet residential street in Stoke-on-Trent became a battleground in March 2023, as a group of armed thugs turned a minor road rage incident into a violent daylight assault that left innocent binmen battered and bloodied.

The terrifying episode began when Joe Cordon, behind the wheel of a Vauxhall Corsa, narrowly avoided a slow-moving bin lorry on its routine route. Instead of brushing off the near miss, he descended into fury, initiating an unprovoked attack that would soon spiral into a multi-man armed rampage.

Cordon launched his assault by attacking the driver and striking the lorry with crude weapons. But the situation escalated rapidly when he was joined by Kyle Worthington and Jack Spackman — both armed and dangerously unhinged. The trio, now a mobile gang of rage-fuelled assailants, brought an axe, sledgehammer, and even a gun into the fray.

As the violence moved through the streets, the innocent binmen were subjected to a barrage of brutality. One worker suffered blunt-force injuries to the face and head, another took blows to the legs. A firearm was discharged during the chaos, sending a wave of fear through nearby homes and leaving locals frozen in disbelief. Despite the severity of the attack, it was only through sheer luck that no lives were lost.

The entire episode — frenzied, reckless, and utterly senseless — left the refuse crew hospitalised, their injuries a grim reminder of how quickly everyday life can be shattered by fury and lawlessness.

Armed police, working with urgency and precision, quickly swooped in to contain the threat. The three attackers were arrested in short order, their weapons seized, and charges rapidly brought. As details of the assault emerged, residents voiced their outrage, with one eyewitness calling it “like something from a horror film — pure madness on a Tuesday morning.”

Cordon, Worthington, and Spackman now face a catalogue of charges, including assault, possession of offensive weapons, and reckless endangerment with a firearm. Legal proceedings are underway, with local authorities promising maximum sentencing for such violent crimes.

Stoke-on-Trent councillor Lynne Wainwright condemned the attack, stating, “Our binmen provide vital services and deserve to feel safe on our streets. This kind of thuggery has no place in our communities.”

Local leaders, alongside the West Midlands Police, reiterated their commitment to zero tolerance toward violent behaviour. As one senior officer put it: “This was an outrageous act of aggression — coordinated and premeditated. These men showed no regard for human life.”

As the community rallies in support of the injured binmen — two of whom are still recovering — calls are growing for greater protection for frontline council workers. Campaigns demanding body-worn cameras and emergency alert devices for bin crews are gaining traction in the aftermath.

In a city grappling with the aftershocks of an ordinary day turned monstrous, residents now look to the courts for justice. Meanwhile, those who witnessed the chaos will not soon forget the clang of tools, flash of gunfire, and the valiant efforts of bin workers who simply turned up to do their jobs.