Staff at a family-run jewellers fought back against hammer-wielding raiders who targeted their shop in a brazen daylight attack. The dramatic robbery unfolded on Saturday morning in Richmond, west London, as shocked members of the public looked on.
Video footage captured by a witness and widely circulated on social media shows two men using a large hammer to smash through the front window of Gregory & Co jewellers. After breaking the glass, the pair began scooping valuables into a blue bag from the display area.
Workers inside the premises desperately attempted to retrieve items before the raiders could grab them. In a courageous effort to stop the theft, staff struck the robbers with what looked like a small box - though this had little effect. The attackers then made their escape as stunned witnesses watched.
A worker from a neighbouring business who saw the incident told the Daily Mail the robbers created mayhem during the heist in the upmarket area. 'The two guys appeared out of nowhere carrying a large sledgehammer and a bag. They then started smashing the jewellers window up,' they said.
The raid marks the latest in a string of similar attacks on jewellery shops throughout London. Just two days earlier on Thursday, a group of men struck Sultan Jewellers on Uxbridge Road in Shepherds Bush, using a sledgehammer to break the windows. Officers arrived within three minutes but were confronted with a hammer as the gang attempted to escape on mopeds. Police arrested a 33-year-old man at the location on suspicion of aggravated burglary and he remains in custody. Several other suspects managed to evade capture.
A police cordon stayed in position for over 12 hours following the incident, with fragments of broken glass and jewellery scattered across the pavement. Jack Stones, landlord of the nearby Defectors Weld pub, discovered fresh blood outside the jewellers when he passed by at 7am, more than three hours after the raid.
