MEN brandishing sledgehammers robbed a pawnbroker in Manchester using a getaway car stolen in Bury.

The car pulled up and parked in front of the Harvey and Thompson Pawnbroker in Cheetham Hill Shopping Centre, shortly before 11am on Thursday, November 10.

Two of the men attacked the glass shop front with sledgehammers and put jewellery worth £20,000, into a bag that was being held by a third man.

All three jumped back into the car, driven by a fourth man, and fled in the direction of Prestwich.

Police have launched an investigation and discovered that the car, a black Isuzu D Class, was stolen from Walshaw Road, Bury on Thursday, October 27. The car was later recovered.

The first offender has been described as white, slim, and wearing a shiny black bubble jacket with a distinctive emblem on the side and gardening gloves in yellow and green. He was also wearing a ski-style balaclava.

The second man was slim and wearing a face covering and green flannel hooded top. The third offender was wearing face covering and a dark jacket and a white/grey hooded top underneath.

Detective Constable Keith Gibbs of GMP’s City of Manchester Team said: “These men brazenly attacked a shop with sledgehammers, paying no regard whatsoever to anyone who may have been in the shop at the time.

“If you witnessed the robbery or saw the men arriving or fleeing, I would urge you to contact police.

Anyone with information is asked to contact police on 0161 856 1901, 101 quoting incident number 689 of 10/11/16 or the independent charity Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.