AN axe-wielding robber forced terrified customers at a petrol station to lie on the floor while money was snatched from the till.

Two masked men raided the BP garage in Blackburn Road, Astley Bridge, armed with an axe and a house brick and used the axe to prise the cash register from the counter.

When the robbers burst in, one stood in the middle of the shop and waved the axe around, demanding that the till be opened.

He then was heard to shout "get on the floor" to the witnesses inside the petrol station.

The other raider moved towards the man working behind the counter and threatened him, prompting the worker to activate the panic alarm.

After snatching the till, they fled, accompanied by a third man dressed all in black, before police arrived. The men were wearing balaclavas and spoke with northern accents.

Police are appealing for witnesses to the raid, which happened on August 23 raid at about 11pm. No arrests have been made.

They are particularly keen to trace the movements of the robbers after they left the Astley Bridge garage.

Det Insp Charlotte Cadden, of the Bolton North neighbourhood policing team, said: "This was a very aggressive robbery committed in the presence of customers, who were left terrified.

"They even ordered witnesses to lie on the floor, such was the brashness with which this was carried out.

"We are working hard to find the culprits and we believe this was an isolated incident and we are not linking it to any other recent robberies in the area.

"I want to reassure the public that we are doing everything we can to catch the perpetrators."

The robbery is one of three armed raids to have taken place in Bolton in the space of nine days.

The HSBC bank, also in Astley Bridge, in Hillview Road, was robbed on Tuesday afternoon, when a female security guard was threatened with an axe and had a cash box stolen from her.

The post office in Plodder Lane, Farnworth was subjected to an attempted raid on Thursday, August 27, when a man tried to smash a glass partition with an axe, but left empty-handed.

Anyone with information should call police on 0161 8565761 or the independent charity, Crimestoppers, anonymously on 0800 555111.