Shotgun raiders steal £10k worth of jewellery

Robbers threatened terrified staff with a gun before snatching around £10,000 of gold jewellery in a raid on a well-known shop.

Two raiders, one armed with a shotgun, struck at John Hollins Jewellers in Dudley at around 3pm on Monday. The raid comes just days after owner John Griffiths celebrated 50 years at the shop.

No shots were fired and no-one was injured but the robbers were able to snatch the haul of jewellery from the counter.

Two female members of staff were in the shop at the time and bosses today said they were recovering from "a terrifying experience".

Among the items taken were curbed and belcher-style chains along with a gold pocket watch and bracelets. Hand-made gold items commissioned especially by the store were also taken in the raid.

Part of Wolverhampton Street was sealed off by police as an investigation was launched and forensic teams moved in.

Police have described the robbers as two white men aged in their early 20s. The shop was open for business as usual on Tuesday.

Mr Griffiths said: "There were two members of staff in the store at the time.

"This was a terrifying experience for them. I am sure every time someone opens the door or they hear a bang outside it will cause them to be on edge for a long while to come.

"Around £10,000 worth of jewellery was taken in the robbery but the main thing is the staff are okay." Mr Griffiths said he had not been in the store at the time of the robbery. He said no branded jewellery had been taken by the robbers.

"The hand-made pieces will cost a little more to replace as we had those made especially before the price of gold was so high."

Detective Inspector Gary Dring, from the Force Criminal Investigation Department said: "This was a serious incident on a busy street in the middle of the afternoon. We need to catch the people responsible."