Two arrested after more than £1,000 stolen and staff threatened with a machete at Blyth shop

A 32-year-old man remains in custody in connection with the armed robbery, and a 34-year-old woman has been released on police bail.

Northumbria Police were called to the shop on Brierly Road just before 10pm on Wednesday, July 26 after a report that someone entered, used the machete to threaten staff, then left with over £1,000 from the till.

An investigation was launched, and police identified an address they believe the suspect left before travelling to the shop and then returned to following the robbery by reviewing CCTV footage.

After securing a warrant, police arrested the male suspect and a woman who was also present at the address.

Superintendent Colin Lowther of Northumbria Police said: “These arrests are the result of thorough and dogged police work by committed officers since this incident occurred just over a week ago.

“Since then officers have been conducting extensive enquiries, which led us to identify a key address for which we were able to swiftly secure a warrant.

“Now, not only do we have two suspects in custody, but we recovered a dangerous weapon which has also been seized and removed from circulation.

“I sincerely hope these arrests act as reassurance to our communities that this type of behaviour is completely unacceptable and we will take proactive steps to ensure suspects are identified and brought to justice.

“In particular, I hope this is welcome news to the staff who were threatened while only trying to do their jobs. This must have been a terrifying ordeal for them to experience.”