A MASKED knife-wielding robber took cash from a Hampshire shop in a morning raid.

Police are investigating after the man entered the Spar store, waited until shoppers had left, and then approached the counter and demanded money.

He made off with £50 from the till at the shop in St Mary's Road, Portsmouth.

During the robbery, which happened at about 8.10am yesterday, he was wearing a hooded top and got into a car parked on Cuthbert Road before driving off.

Detective Sergeant Rich Gibson said: “Fortunately this type of robbery is not common and the two stores assistants were not injured, however we take this sort of incident extremely seriously.

“We have got an increased police presence in the area today, conducting enquiries, however we would urge anyone who witnessed the incident, or saw a car being driven the wrong way along Cuthbert Road this morning, to call us”.

Anyone with information can call police on 101 and quote reference number 44160451107.