Three robbers, one brandishing a claw hammer, raided a supermarket and demanded staff open a safe before making off with cash from inside.

Detectives say a trio of snood and bandana wearing men robbed a Co-op store in Dartford, last Thursday.

Officers were called to the shop in Colney Road, at about 10pm after the trio demanded cash from the shop workers.

One robber attempted to take a mobile phone from a worker while a second started to empty the tills.

Another worker, who had been in the back of the store, walked to the front before being made to walk to an office where a third robber demanded they opened the safe.

This robber was brandishing a claw hammer and also made one of the other staff members go into the office to help get the safe open.

All the raiders then left the store and drove away in a white van.

Prior to this robbery the trio had entered another Co-Op store in Chastilian Road, in the borough before seeing a queue of customers and quickly walking back out the store.

The first suspect is white, between 5ft 6ins and 5ft 7ins and wearing a black coat, dark coloured trousers and dirty white laced trainers with black gloves.

He was also wearing a snood over his face.

The second is also white, around 6ft, of slim build and was wearing a black jacket with a fur trimmed hood and his face was concealed with a grey snood cover.

The third suspect is also white, around 5ft 9ins and was wearing a white hooded fleece top with the hood worn up, a grey baseball cap, grey trousers and black trainers.

He was carrying the claw hammer and also had a blue coloured bandana covering his face.

Anyone with information is asked to call 01474 366149 quoting reference 03-0681.