Police are appealing for witnesses after a man with a knife robbed a forecourt store in Suffolk.

The incident occurred just after 6am on Thursday 2 April, at the Esso Service Station in Combs Ford, Stowmarket. Officers were called immediately after the incident took place, arriving at the scene within minutes.

They were told a man had approached the counter, pointed a knife at the member of staff and demanded that they empty the till. An amount of cash was handed over and the offender left, walking onto Ipswich Road in the direction of the town centre.

The suspect is described as white, around 6ft tall, of slim build and with blue eyes. He was wearing a red baseball cap, a bandana, a grey hooded top and was carrying a backpack.

Police would like to hear from anyone who saw a man matching this description in the area of Combs Ford and Ipswich Road between 5.30am and 6.30am this morning, and in particular anyone driving through who may have captured dashcam footage.

Detective inspector Matt Adams said: “Unfortunately there have now been a number of similar robberies to this one over the past 10 days across the county and we understand that this will be causing concern for employees and business owners alike.

“I would like to reassure all those people affected that we are working extremely hard to detect who is responsible for these offences, with our teams gathering forensic evidence and pursuing a number of leads, which have resulted in us making several arrests.

“Local communities can be of great assistance to us by being our eyes and ears – especially at the moment while the majority of people are at home. Please be vigilant and report anything to us that you believe to be suspicious.

“Any businesses that feel they would benefit from advice on crime prevention and additional security measures are urged to contact their local Safer Neighbourhood Team for assistance.

“Officers are actively patrolling throughout communities in Suffolk, and we are determined to do everything we can to protect the public, key workers and businesses.”

Any witnesses to this crime, or anyone with information or dashcam footage, are asked to contact West CID at Bury St Edmunds Police Station, quoting reference: 19241/20.

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