A MOP-wielding shop assistant chased off two armed robbers from a Redditch convenience store – after one of them had held a gun to a co-worker’s head.
The masked duo, who are both thought to be male, entered Biddle’s family-run Simplyfresh store on Birchfield Road in Webheath at 8.25pm on the evening of Monday (July 4) carrying a large crowbar and the handgun.
The pair made their way to the till point where they pointed the gun at the cashier’s head and emptied the cash register of its contents.
As the cashier screamed for help, another member of staff came to her aid, grabbing a mop and chasing the robbers from the shop.
The terrified two then sounded the panic button and the Biddle family arrived shortly before the armed response police unit together with paramedics.
“We are really upset for our staff,” said Helen Biddle.
“It has made us all feel sick that this is the world we now live in.
“We are devastated – it is a dreadful thing to happen to anyone and they are such amazing staff.
“No one deserves to go through something like this and I only hope that it doesn’t affect them in the future.”
The two members of staff in the store, who wish to remain anonymous, were badly shaken by the experience but otherwise unhurt.
It is thought the robbers made their escape on pushbikes, making off down Heathfield Road.
The first man was wearing a black hooded top with a dark blue hooded jacket over the top and dark trousers, while the second was wearing a dark blue hooded top and light blue tracksuit trousers with two vertical stripes on them.
Both men were wearing black gloves and had their faces covered by a white cloth.
Anyone with information about the incident on Birchfield Road should contact police on 101 quoting incident number 786s of July 4
