A masked gang armed with a chainsaw, baseball bats and a sledgehammer fled with a number of watches after raiding Beaverbrooks in the White Rose Shopping Centre in Leeds.
The gang of five went into the store just after 8.30pm on Wednesday as the store was about to close. Video footage shows a masked man wielding a chainsaw outside the store as the rest of the gang ransack the shop and steal watches.
Police said a member of staff had their hair pulled during the incident but was otherwise physically unharmed. West Yorkshire Police said they received multiple calls from 8:42pm about the ongoing robbery.
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Detective Inspector John Graham, of Leeds District CID, said: “This clearly planned and targeted robbery has taken place when the shopping centre was reasonably quiet, but I understand the huge concern that seeing these individuals armed with multiple weapons will have caused to those who were present. Thankfully, the staff member who was confronted by these robbers did not suffer any lasting injury, but this has been an extremely traumatic experience for them.
“Any use of weapons that causes people to fear violence is extremely serious. We have extensive enquiries ongoing to identify those responsible. I would urge anyone who has any information that could assist us in our ongoing investigation into this robbery to please make contact.”
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Information can be passed to Leeds District CID via Live Chat online or by calling 101, quoting crime reference 13240344913.
You can also pass on information anonymously to independent charity Crimestoppers by calling 0800 555 111 or online.