£6,000 Wolverhampton raiders caught on CCTV

Here is the moment three masked raiders smashed their way into a Wolverhampton convenience store and stole £6,000 worth of cigarettes.

The five-minute raid – captured entirely on shop CCTV – saw the men snatch a haul of goods from the Costcutter in Dudley Road, Blakenhall, before fleeing the scene in a silver Audi car.

The brazen gang even took the time to close the store's shutters after stealing cigarettes.

Minutes earlier, a similar raid happened at Morrisons petrol station in Bilston. Police are investigating whether the two burglaries were linked.

Images released today show the gang arrive outside the Costcutter shop in the silver Audi, just moments after a cyclist had passed the store.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EKmj7PUzE50

Within a few seconds, the masked raiders armed with crowbars and cutting equipment, forced open the automatic shutters and set about opening the shop door.

They then make their way inside and one of the gang emerges with a haul of cigarettes, carrying his loot in a huge white bag.

But seemingly unhappy with just a bag-full of goods, two of the men return to search for more. Images from inside the shop show one man acting as a lookout.

Within minutes, another emerges dragging a huge bag of cigarettes. The shutters are then seen closing, with the silver Audi speeding away towards Parkfield Road. Staff at the store, which also operates as a post office, said the raiders had also checked a cash machine for money.

Costcutter shopkeeper Tajinder Singh gave the footage to the Express & Star in the hope the raiders can be identified.

Mr Singh said a £1,200 device used for monitoring stock was also stolen during the raid which happened at about 12.20am on Monday while the Morrisons petrol station, just off the Black Country Route in Bankfield Road, had thousands of pounds of cigarettes taken just after midnight.

West Midlands Police spokesman Lee Page said officers are probing the two raids.