TWO men burst into a betting shop and stole cash from the till yesterday.

The incident happened at Ladbrokes in St Martin's Quarter, Worcester, after the men entered the city centre branch at about 7.15pm.

The first man approached the counter with his hands in his pockets and told the cashier to hand over the cash while the other man stood in the doorway to prevent it from being locked.

Worried he was concealing a weapon, the cashier handed over the cash she had in her till.

One of the customers in the store attempted to leave and was told by the first man to sit down and he was threatened with violence.

Once the cash had been handed over, both men made off on foot in the direction of St Paul’s Street.

Both men are described as being Asian or possibly white, in their late teens or early 20s, between 5ft 8ins and 6ft tall, of slim to medium build and both had their faces covered.

The offence is being investigated by Detective Constable Wayne Cashion at Worcester CID, who said: “Robberies of this nature are rare in Worcester and as such we are treating it very seriously.

“While no one was hurt, the cashier and the customers present were shaken up by the offence and it is unacceptable that people have been targeted by criminals in their workplace.

“We would like to hear from anyone who recognises the description of the two men or who were in the St Martin’s Quarter or St Paul’s Street areas and saw something suspicious.”

The first man was wearing a black hooded puffer jacket, blue tracksuit bottoms with white stripes down the side and trainers.

He was also wearing a mask that covered the lower half of his face, possibly a cyclist's pollution mask.

The second man was wearing a black hooded top and a scarf over his face, possibly with a Burberry pattern.

Anyone with information should call the police, quoting incident number 552s 14/01/14, on the non-emergency number 101.