Shopkeeper threatened with kitchen knife

At around 7.45am on Saturday 23 January 2016, a man walked into First Edition Newsagents, Warrington Road, Wigan, with his face covered by his hood.

He approached the counter and demanded money, only for the shopkeeper to protest that he didn’t have anything to hand over.

The offender then pulled out a grey-handled kitchen knife and pointed it at the victim, again demanding that he hand over cash.

The shopkeeper removed £20 from the till and gave it to him, and the offender ran out of the shop and down Warrington Road towards the town centre.

The offender is described as white, around 25-years-old, 5ft 8in tall, slim build and ginger or fair complexion. He was wearing a scruffy grey hood, black trousers and spoke with a local accent.

Detective Sergeant Nigel Rigby said: “This was a terrifying robbery for the shopkeeper, who was faced with a desperate man wielding a kitchen knife.

“He was uninjured and the amount stolen was negligible, but that should take nothing away from the severity of this crime.

“This man was prepared to brandish a knife and possibly use it to get what he wanted, so it is important that we identify him to ensure he does not subject any others to such an ordeal.”

Anyone with information is asked to call police on 101 quoting incident number 230116/0604 or the independent charity Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.