AN armed robber stole hundreds of pounds from Tesco's tills in Marlbrook, just 15 minutes after he made off with the store's charity box.

The brazen thief is reported to have grabbed the collection box from the store's counter in Old Birmingham Road at around 8.10pm on Saturday (September 30).

The same man is then believed to have returned to the shop at 8.25pm, approaching the counter with a knife and demanding money from the tills.

Several hundred pounds were stolen, before the offender made off on foot in the direction of Braces Lane.

Police in Bromsgrove have since released CCTV images of a man they would like to speak to in connection with the theft and robbery.

Detective constable Emma Mackay, of Worcestershire CID, said "Incidents such as this are not common in the area and thankfully nobody was injured.

"We would like to speak to any customers who were in the store at the time and are particularly keen to identify and talk to the man pictured above.

"You could have important information about the incident that could help with our investigation and I urge you to call police."
Witnesses are urged to call 101, quoting crime number 771s.

Information can also be given anonymously to Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 or at crimestoppers-uk.org.