Caught on camera: Armed raiders stock up on favourite booze and cigarettes

A PAIR of knife-wielding thugs have been caught on CCTV holding up a grocery store and reeling off a shopping list of their favourite cigarettes and alcohol.

The hoodie-wearing robbers burst into Sighthill General Store and waved a six-inch knife in the terrified assistant’s face. They went on to demand specific brands of alcohol and cigarettes as well as the bank notes from the till – and then asked for a plastic bag to carry it all out.

The pair then calmly strolled out of the store, telling the terrified member of staff: “You can ring the police now.”

The Evening News has footage of the raid on Tuesday evening where one of the thieves can be seen brandishing the knife before using it to point at what they wanted. One of the men then dropped a bottle of Jack Daniel’s as they walked out the shop in the direction of Sighthill Loan.

Shop owner Zahid Mahmood, 40, said the “calm” burglars had been “very cheeky”. He said: “My colleague was in here when they came in at around 7pm. They shouted at him to ‘open the till’ but they were very calm. They demanded JPS, Mayfield and Sterling cigarettes and asked for a bottle of Glen’s vodka and Jack Daniel’s. They also got around £120 in notes from the till.

“There was no aggression, they were very calm about it. As they left they turned and said ‘now you can phone the police’ and that was it.

“My colleague was extra upset because he had just failed his driving test that day, then he had to face the robbery. I had only just stocked up our cigarettes at 6.50pm. On the same day we had a boy come in with a fake £20 note, but I don’t know of any link.”

Usman Afim, 36, who was looking after the shop at the time, added: “Unfortunately I was the one in the shop. They came in with a very long knife, so it was upsetting. It is the first time it has happened to me, and it lasted two or three minutes.”

Both robbers are described as white and in their 20s. They spoke with local accents.

The first man is described as 5ft 1in to 5ft 7in, medium to heavy build, and wearing a black hooded top with a white panel on the front, black tracksuit bottoms and dark gloves.

The second is said to be 6ft 2in, of medium build, and wearing a black hooded top, black Adidas tracksuit bottoms with three stripes and cream gloves.

A police spokesman said: “While the victim was not harmed, he was left understandably shaken after being violently threatened at knifepoint. We want anyone who was in the area of the shop around the time of the robbery, who noticed two men acting suspiciously, to contact police immediately.

“Anyone who recognises their descriptions, or who has any other information that can help our inquiries, should also get in touch.”

Contact Lothian and Borders Police on 0131-311 3131 or Crimestoppers in confidence and complete anonymity on 0800 555 111.