AN ARMED robber pointed a gun in a man’s face before demanding cash in a terrifying attempted robbery.
The man pulled the handgun from a black jacket and held it up to the manager of Layton’s Betfred bookmakers, on Westcliffe Drive, before ordering him to hand over cash.
But the quick-thinking manager - who was alone in the shop at the time - managed to escape into a back office before the robber fled the bookmakers empty handed.
The terrifying incident unfolded at around 7.30pm last night after the man, who was wearing a dark coat zipped up and a white woollen hat pulled over his face, entered the store.
And now police are appealing for anyone who may have seen anything to come forward.
Detective Inspector Andrew Unsworth said: “Clearly, this was a very distressing incident for the member of staff involved, thankfully he was uninjured and due to his calm and quick thinking the offender got away with nothing.
“I would appeal to anyone who was in the area at the time who may have seen this man or anyone acting suspiciously to contact police.”
Anybody with any information can contact police on 101 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 or on-line at Crimestoppers-uk.org.