CCTV footage of an armed robbery suspect has been released after a raid on a Christchurch convenience store on Thursday morning.

As reported by the Daily Echo, police were called to McColl's in Somerford Road at 6.51am after a man walked into the shop with a knife and demanded money from the till.

He then grabbed cash and left the scene.

No one was hurt during the incident.

Police have carried out a search of the area. No arrests have yet been made.

The suspect is described as white. He is in his 20s and was wearing a black hooded top and black tracksuit bottoms.

Detective Constable Garry Weston, of Bournemouth CID, said: “This must have been a distressing incident for the member of staff who was in the store at the time and we have launched an extensive investigation to identify the suspect.

“We have made a number of enquiries into this incident, including house-to-house, a trawl of CCTV footage and examinations of the scene.

“I am also issuing CCTV images of the suspect. While I appreciate his face cannot be clearly seen, someone might recognise the clothing he is wearing and I would urge anyone who knows who he is to please contact us."

Officers from the neighbourhood policing team have launched extra patrols to reassure the community, he said.

Anyone with information should contact police via dorset.police.uk or by calling 101, quoting 55180078696.