A BRANTHAM mum has today described her shock after witnessing an armed raid carried out by masked men.The woman, who did not want to be named, witnessed the robbery in the Co-op store in Acacia Court, Brantham, at about 8.

A BRANTHAM mum has today described her shock after witnessing an armed raid carried out by masked men.

The woman, who did not want to be named, witnessed the robbery in the Co-op store in Acacia Court, Brantham, at about 8.30pm last night while she was driving home with her 26-year-old daughter.

She said: “We were sitting in the car as I got money out of my purse, I looked up and saw there was a man standing near the doorway wearing a hood.

“Then I saw there were two other men dressed in the same way. They were all holding something although I couldn't clearly see what it was - it looked like pipes.

“Then the three men came running out of the shop and got into a red Rover that was parked in Sycamore Road.”

The woman then went into the shop where she found four customers and the shop assistant who were all shaken from their ordeal.

She said: “When my daughter went into the shop she found out that the pipes we had seen had been a sawn-off shotgun, which the robbers had held to the head of a young female customer.

“The young shop assistant was very shaken up - everyone was.”

Miriam Harrop, spokeswoman for the East of England Co-operative Society, said: “Thankfully these incidents are rare, however, when they do occur it is very distressing for the staff and customers involved.

“Thankfully, everyone in the store at the time is okay and we would like to thank them for the way they dealt with such a difficult situation.”

A police spokesman said the first man was described as wearing a balaclava, a black zip up waist length jacket, black trousers, white trainers and gloves. He was carrying a dark coloured double-barrelled shotgun.

The second man was wearing a light coloured homemade balaclava, a black padded jacket with motifs on both sides of the chest and white trainers with a darker patch near the laces. He was carrying a wooden stick approximately the same length as a snooker cue.

The third man was wearing a light coloured homemade balaclava, a waist length jacket, dark trousers, white trainers and light coloured gloves. He was carrying a dark coloured stick, which was possibly a crow bar.

Soon after, police recovered a red Rover 214 bearing false plates in Church Lane, Brantham with the engine running which was believed to have been used by the robbers. The vehicle was stolen from Colchester on Tuesday.

Anyone with information about the robbery should call Suffolk police on 01473 613500 or crimestoppers on 0800-555111.