Armed robbers carry out £40,000 raid in Mossley

ARMED robbers carried out a ‘brazen’ £40,000 raid in Mossley only yards from where a car boot sale was being held.

Their target on Saturday, June 19 was The Cash Emporium on the junction of Argyle Street and Market Street.

Shortly before 9.30am Peter Tucker, who runs the family-owned business, responded to the doorbell being rung.

As Peter, 32, who lives in Mossley, opened the door, two men wearing balaclavas and brandishing machetes stormed into the shop.

Peter was kicked and punched, sustaining bruising, before the robbers emptied the safe which contained jewellery and cash before fleeing.

He said: “I couldn’t believe how brazen they were with the market just yards away. Never in one million years did I expect it to happen with it so busy outside.

“It had been a bad year since opening the shop in February 2020 as I had been shut for nine months since then.

“I had been waiting for a Saturday like this, a good day with a good atmosphere and dozens of people on the front but ended up having to close for the day.”

While the robbers were wearing balaclavas, the shop’s excellent CCTV cameras are also able to pick up audio which could be vital in identifying them.

Peter has also been able to give police descriptions of all the items taken – £26,000 worth of gold rings, necklaces and watch and £14,000 cash.

The most expensive item stolen was a 2.4 carat diamond ring valued at £40,000 which had been for sale at £15,000 along with a TAG Heuer Carrera watch.

“I have all the serial numbers so they can be identified if somebody goes into a jewellers’ shop and tries to sell them,” he said.

The raid also put the dampener on his son Logan’s seventh birthday celebrations later in the day.