Shop robbery leaves residents in shock

POLICE conducted house-to-house inquiries yesterday as they stepped up their investigation into the knifepoint robbery at Union Street Stores. Extensive searches of the area were carried out but no arrests have been made.

'We're appealing to people who may have seen anything, no matter how small or seemingly insignificant, to contact the police or the confidential Crimestoppers line ' it could make the difference in our investigation,' said Inspector Paul Gill.

The victim, a woman who did not want to be named, was uninjured but left in a state of shock.

An unknown sum of cash was stolen.

The shop owner did not want to comment on the incident, but manageress Lollie White, who is pregnant and expecting her baby in two weeks, said she was very worried. She had only just left the shop when the robbery took place.

'It really concerns me ' Guernsey's supposed to be a safe place and I feel very uncomfortable,' she said.

An unemployed 22-year-old man, who declined to be named, said he believed he knew the robber from the description given by police. He did not give a name or any further details but said that he was still shocked by the incident.

'From the police description, I can guess who it might be. I just couldn't believe it happened at that time in the afternoon.'

His friend, an unemployed 24-year-old, who also did not wish to be named, was not surprised that the raid happened but said he was amazed it happened during daylight hours.

'There's a lot of crime going on ' whoever's done it is an idiot.'

Others along Union Street said they were horrified, too.

'I was really taken aback when I heard,' said John McLean, 65.

'Guernsey is Guernsey and that sort of thing is very rare. It's very sad when things like this happen. You start looking at people in a different light.'

He was at home when the robbery took place but, like many others in the area, did not hear or see anything. A spokeswoman for Heath Lambert, an insurance management company across the road from the shop, said that none of the employees saw anything suspicious.

'Like everybody else around here, we're just very shocked and stunned.'

Lotti Kerridge, 19, who works at and lives in the flat above the Little Angels Daycare Nursery, said she had noticed people acting suspiciously in the street.

'There seems to be some dodgy people around here quite a lot. People often stand on the corner and swap positions ' I don't know if they're waiting for anybody, but it's a bit odd.'

The raid, at 3.40pm on Tuesday, was the second of its kind in less than three weeks. Rosemary Dennis, co-owner of Contree Mansell Stores, feared for her life when two masked men held a knife to her chest and escaped with about '3,000 in cash.

'I just hope they find the people responsible and lock them up,' she said yesterday.

'People on the island are going to be worried that it's going to happen to them next. My sympathies lie with the people who were raided at Union Street.

'It's just a terrifying experience and I've found it very difficult since, even though I've been able to talk about it. I still jump when the shop door opens. I'll get over it, but it's going to take a long time.'

Officers investigating the Union Street raid have said there was no direct evidence to link it with the robbery at Contree Mansell. But the proximity and similarity between the incidents mean that they are keeping an open mind.

They are looking for a 6ft man of average build. He was wearing a grey hooded top and a black scarf around his face.

*'Anyone with any information is urged to contact the police station on 725111 or the confidential Crimestoppers line on 0800 555 111.