POLICE were last night hunting a robber who walked into an Essex bank and threatened a cashier with a gun.The robbery happened at Barclays Bank in Prettygate, Colchester, at 9.

By Annie Davidson

POLICE were last night hunting a robber who walked into an Essex bank and threatened a cashier with a gun.

The robbery happened at Barclays Bank in Prettygate, Colchester, at 9.30am yesterday.

The offender walked into the bank and demanded money from a female cashier. He was holding what was believed to be a firearm wrapped in a plastic bag.

The woman handed over cash and the robber left but it is not known which direction he went in. Police said there were no customers in the bank at the time of the robbery.

Although uninjured, the cashier was shocked and upset by the incident and was being supported by colleagues yesterday.

Police have appealed for witnesses to come forward who may have seen the man in the busy shopping area near the bank either before or after the robbery.

He is described as white, aged in his early 20s, about 5ft 10ins tall and of slim to medium build.

He was wearing a green and brown camouflage jacket, black woolly hat and black woolly scarf worn around his lower face.

A spokesman for Barclays Bank said: “The incident is now in police hands and there is not much we can disclose.

“We are offering counselling to all our staff which is our normal procedure following this type of incident.

“We cannot talk about individual security issues but we review security all the time and following these incidents we always look to see where we can make improvements.”

The spokesman declined to reveal how much money had been stolen.

Anyone with information should contact Detective Sergeant Mark Merry, at Colchester Police Station, on 01206 762212.