£500,000 watch raid in front of stunned shoppers

Watches worth an estimated £1m have been stolen during a robbery at Selfridges in Manchester city centre whilst the store was still open.

Three masked men walked into Selfridges on Exchange Square shortly after 7.20pm last night. They smashed display cabinets with an axe taking around 100 watches including brands like Audermars Piguet, Jaeger le Coultre, and Cartier.

They escaped in a Black Mercedes Benz driven by a fourth offender. The car was found abandoned Robert Street, Strangeways, a short time later.

Detective Constable Adam Cronshaw, said: "This was a brazen robbery while the store was open and busy with members of the public. "It was clearly well planned and executed. These men were in and out in less than 80 seconds and were very particular about the watches they selected. "I am appealing for anyone who knows who is responsible or has overhead someone talking about this robbery - either before or after it happened - to contact us in absolute confidence. "The clothing worn appears to be brand new and I am also eager to hear from anyone who knows where they may have been purchased or manufactured. "The offenders will, at some point, undoubtedly look to off load these watches and I would urge people to be mindful of this robbery and again if anyone is approached with a view to buying any of these items to please contact us."

Anyone with information is asked to call police on 0161 856 3240, or Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.