Knife-and-hammer wielding men raid Doncaster store

The two men, who carried a knife and a hammer, stole cash and alcohol in the incident on Sunday night from the One Stop Shop on Skellow Road, Skellow, just before 10pm.

The men, who had covered their faces with scarves, demanded cash from the staff and left the store with an unknown quantity of money and drink.

A man who arrived at the store shortly after the incident, but did not want to be named, said: “I think it must have happened only minutes before I got there. I had just finished work and went to the store to get some bits, like I do most Sunday nights.

“I’d just parked up and got out of the car when I noticed one of the workers was locking the door. I went over and asked her if they were closing, as they normally shut at 11pm, and she said yes because two men had robbed them.

“She said a man with a hammer had come in first and then a man with a knife, and they’d threatened them. There were just two female members of staff in store.

“While I was talking to one of the members of the staff at the door, the other was on the phone to the police and they arrived within about three minutes.

“It’s the fastest police response I’ve seen in this area. There were at least three police cars outside the shop and another four or five circling in the area. I also heard the police helicopter circling above.

“Thankfully, both women were okay, they were just shaken.”

The man added that he felt lucky he was not involved in the incident as he is usually in the store by 10pm.

“If I had been a few minutes earlier I am sure I would have been in the store when it happened, but I was running late. It’s quite a scary thought, to think that I could have been doing my normal shopping and then these two men would have come in trying to take something that wasn’t theirs.

“It’s awful to think there were people carrying a hammer and a knife around with them and threatening two young women. I really hope the police catch the men who did this.”

A South Yorkshire Police spokesman said: “At about 9.55pm, it is reported that two men, both described as having their faces covered, entered the One Stop shop in Skellow Road and made demands for cash.

“It is alleged that the two men were carrying a knife and a hammer, although no one was injured during the incident.

“The men stole cash and a quantity of alcohol from the shop.

“The two men are both described as white, with one in his 20s and the other thought to be in his 30s. They were both wearing tracksuit bottoms and were using scarfs to cover their faces.”

The incident came just two years after a member of staff was threatened with a kitchen knife at the store.

If you have any information about what happened, call 101 quoting incident number 1444 of 11 September 2016. Information can also be given to Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555111.