A teenage boy suffered a black eye when three men punched him in the face to steal his mobile phone.

The 16-year-old boy, who lives in Chelmsford, was walking home from the city centre sometime between 4am and 4.30am today along the footpath between Arbour Lane and Stump Lane when he was approached by three men.

They threatened him, stole his mobile phone and then punched him in the face. The boy suffered a black eye but did not require hospital treatment.

The first suspect is described as white, 5ft 10ins tall, of a stocky build, aged between 18 and 20-years-old and had short, brown hair. He was wearing a black Stone Island beanie hat, a black hooded top and black bottoms.

The second man was also white, aged between 18 and 20-years-old, 5ft 10ins tall, of a stocky build and was wearing a grey snap back style cap, a black crew top and dark bottoms.

The third man was black, 6ft 1ins tall, of medium build, aged between 18 and 21 and was wearing a black baseball cap, a white hooded jumper with a logo on the front, dark bottoms and was carrying a rucksack.

Anybody who saw the men acting suspiciously in the area around the time of the incident or who witnessed what happened is asked to contact Dc Paul Dines at Chelmsford CID on Essex Police 101.

People can also give information to the independent crime-fighting charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 or via an Anonymous Online Form at www.crimestoppers-uk.org