Robbery at petrol station with machete

ROBBERS armed with machetes targeted a petrol station in Failsworth.

Two men lay in wait on a blue Yamaha Y6 motorbike on Oldham Road, near to the Texaco petrol station, shortly before 2pm on Sunday.

After 10 minutes, a cash-in-transit van arrived at the petrol station and the driver went into the petrol station with the safe box.

At the same time, the two men on the motorbike pulled into the forecourt, both armed with machetes. One man stayed with the motorbike at the shop entrance to stop any customers entering, whilst the second went into the shop and made his way to the back room, kicking at the door demanding to be let in.

He approached the cashier and stole money from the till, before returning to the door where the safe is. The man, with the machete, made threats to the cashier, who was forced to open the door and he stole a significant amount of cash.

Both men fled on the motorbike in the direction of Newton Heath.

They were both wearing distinctive helmets and balaclavas.

The first man is described as white, 5ft 8in tall, and was wearing a brown padded jacket, blue jeans, black footwear and a white and black helmet.

The second man is described as white, 6ft tall, of large build, and was wearing a distinctive yellow and black helmet.

Det Sgt Jason Byrne, of GMP's Oldham Borough appealed for information on the the men.

He said: "It is clear that these men were calculated in their approach, as they scoped out the petrol station before making their move.

"If you saw the men hanging around with the motorbike about 100 yards from the petrol station or perhaps you saw them fleeing the scene, please get in touch with police."

Anyone any with information is asked to contact police by calling 101 quoting incident number 1384 11/12/16, or else Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.