Armed robber escapes with security van cash in central Bournemouth (From Bournemouth Echo)

Armed robber escapes with security van cash in central Bournemouth

7:40pm Tuesday 7th July 2009 in

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AN armed robber threatened a security guard with a gun before fleeing with a cashbox in central Bournemouth on Monday night.

The drama unfolded outside the Nationwide Building Society in Old Christchurch Road at 8.50pm when the man – wearing a dark hooded top, sunglasses, gloves, jeans and white shirt – approached the Group 4 Securicor guard.

A passer-by went into a nearby shop and shouted to staff to call the police because someone was outside with a gun. They pressed their alarm button.

After taking the cashbox, the robber ran back to a parked red saloon car. Seconds later, witnesses heard a small explosion and saw flames inside the vehicle. The man fled on foot through Horseshoe Common.

The store manager said: “I was worried something had happened to the girls, so I came down immediately. By the time I got there, there were fire engines and police everywhere and I could see a car on fire. The police came quite quickly, but the robber had already made a run for it.”

Police closed off Old Christchurch Road to traffic and pedestrians, and placed a cordon around the common. Armed officers, dog handlers, the police helicopter and crime scene investigators joined the search.

The missing cashbox was recovered, but police have not revealed how much was in it.

A local bar manager said: “As we were closing up, they were taking away the burned out vehicle and the van.”

Detective Inspector Craig Travers of Bournemouth and Poole CID said: “This was a very serious incident, in a busy public place. I am appealing to anyone who may have witnessed it to contact me urgently.

“I would also like to speak with anyone who recalls seeing a man in a stationary red Ford Scorpio on Old Christchurch Road between 6pm and 9pm on Monday.”

Anyone with information should contact Dorset police on 01202 222 222 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

• A 44-year-old Bournemouth man was yesterday helping police with their inquiries.