ARMED thugs yelled "give us the money or we'll stab you" to a terrified shop assistant during a late night robbery.

Nathan Seddon, 21, was working in DKM Super Store on Trapwood Close, Eccleston last night, Tuesday, September 17 when two armed marked thugs came in.

Speaking to the Star, Nathan, who has only been in the job for two months, recalled the moment one thug threatened to stab him if he did not hand over the cash from the till.

St Helens Star:

Speaking to the Star, he said: "I was closing up the shop and then two lads burst in and started screaming saying 'give us the money'.

"One of the lads had a knife and the other had a hammer.

"I didn't know what to do and stood back behind the counter, there is only one way in or out of that shop and it's the way they came in so I was trapped.

"The one with the knife tried to pull the till off the counter but he couldn't so he said 'give us the money or we'll stab you' and started swinging the knife in my face.

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The first thug with the knife

"I opened the till and emptied out the till, which was around £300, and then they ran off.

"It was scary. I didn't really process it until after I called police, who came really quickly, and then I got home.

"My sister works at the shop as well and she won't be working night shifts anymore.

"I'm just really shaken up. It's not something that should happen anyway but you expect it even less from a small local shop.

"I reckon they are local as it did not seem like they had really thought it all through.

"It was frightening, I don't want anything like that to ever happen again."

The incident took place at around 8.45pm.

St Helens Star:

The second thug with the hammer

Both men ran off and police are now searching for them.

One offender is described as white, around 18-years-old, approximately 5ft 8ins tall, wearing a black top with hood.

The second man is also described as white, around 18-years-old, approximately 5ft 8ins tall, with dark clothing with a hood and a coat zipped up covering his face.

An investigation is ongoing and anyone with information is asked to come forward.

Detective Inspector Tony O’Brien said: “We are investigating this incident and a number of enquiries are being carried out in the area and I would ask anyone with information on this robbery to please contact us.

“It is not right that someone just doing their job should be subjected to such a distressing experience.

"Trapwood Close is a busy residential area and I would ask anyone with any CCTV, dashcam footage or information that may be able to assist the investigation to please get in touch.”

Anyone with information can contact @MerPolCC, call 101 with reference 19100529135 or you can contact @CrimestoppersUK anonymously on 0800 555111.