A jewellery store in Preston was subject to a shocking daylight raid yesterday afternoon.

Police are now appealing for information after two men, who were not thought to be armed, walked into Sohum jewellery store on Meadow Street, Preston at around 3pm, tied up the owner and his family in the back room and left with thousands of pounds worth of jewellery and cash from the till.

After committing the robbery, the men took off in a black car heading in an unknown direction. They were described as white and wearing all black clothing.

David McKenna, Detective Inspector of Preston CID, said: “This appears to have been a planned robbery and so I would appeal to anyone who witnessed either the robbery itself or, in particular, anyone who may have noticed any suspicious activity on Meadow Street either around the time of the robbery or even in the days or weeks leading up to the incident to contact police.

“Fortunately, nobody was hurt, although the victims have been left shocked following what can only be described as a terrifying ordeal so if anyone does have any information then I would urge them to contact us.”

The public are now being asked to come forward to help with the investigation, and anyone with any information should call police on the new non-emergency number 101, or pass their information to the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 or on-line at Crimestoppers-uk.org.