Police hunt cash machine robbers who shot security guard during string of raids

Detectives warn of 'increasing violence' as Scotland Yard releases footage of shooting

Police are hunting two armed robbers who shot a security guard during a string of raids on staff refilling cash machines.

Scotland Yard said the pair had struck five times in north-east London since May 2016, ambushing guards and threatening them with guns as they delivered money.

Detectives warned the robbers were growing increasingly violent, having also pistol-whipped an employee at a cash-and-carry.

The Metropolitan Police has released CCTV footage of the latest raid, in which a security guard was shot three times and seriously injured at Nationwide Building Society on Walthamstow High Street.

The robbers, both dressed in dark clothing and motorbike helmets, threatened two guards as they refilled cash at 3.25am on 18 May this year.

One of them was armed with a self-loading pistol fitted with a silencer, which they fired several times when the guards refused to hand over the money. The robbers escaped in a stolen Ford Fiesta.

The guard spent a week in hospital following the raid, which has been linked to four other robberies.

In the first, the suspects – both armed with guns – pistol-whipped staff at a 24-hour cash-and-carry Cyprofood in Tottenham on 23 May last year before escaping in an Audi A4 with stolen number plates.

Weeks later, on 28 June, they ambushed security guards as they refilled a cash machine at Santander bank in Woodgrange Road, Newham. The robbers, one armed with revolver-style firearm, stole cash before driving off in a silver Volswagen Scirocco.

The other two raids took place at another Santander branch in Mare Street, Hackney.

In the first, on 29 August last year, the robbers ambushed two security guards and threatened them with a pistol as they refilled a cash machine. They stole cash and escaped in a stolen Range Rover Sport.

On 3 December 2016, two suspects again attacked two guards as delivered cash to the same branch but were stopped from stealing cash by the victims and a member of the public.

The suspects escaped in a white 4x4 Mitsubishi Outlander, which has since been recovered by police.

Detective Chief Inspector Nick Blackburn, of Scotland Yard's robbery squad, said: “An increasing amount of violence is being used during these offences and we need the public’s help to identify the suspects, their firearms and the stolen cars they escaped in.

“In the latest offence, a guard was shot a number of times at close range. Fortunately, he has recovered from his physical injuries but has suffered a severe psychological impact from the incident.

“Any piece of information, no matter how small, could be what we need to identify the men responsible for these crimes.”

Detectives have appealed for anyone with information to come forward, while Crimestoppers is offering a £5,000 for a tip-off that leads to the robbers' arrest and conviction.