A Colchester councillor has called for tougher sentences on armed burglars after a man in his 70s was forced to hand over a four figure sum of cash after being threatened with a screwdriver in an aggravated burglary.

The burglary happened at a home at the rear of a shop in London Road, Colchester on Monday evening shortly before 7.30pm.

Two men entered the home and threatened the victim with a screwdriver, forcing him to handover a four figure sum of cash, jewellery and a mobile phone.

He was also threatened with a knife and made to lie face-down on the floor while the men left.

Michael Lilley, Colchester Borough Council’s portfolio holder for public safety and licensing, said: “It’s very much out of the blue really because I haven’t heard of anything like this before, so it is not a trend.

“It is a terrible thing and the fact he was threatened with a screwdriver still amounts to an intention to wound someone.

“It all goes back to being tougher on knife crime – if you are threatening someone with a knife or screwdriver it should be a tougher sentence because it is not right.”

Police issued a description of two men involved, with possibly a third also having carried out a messy search in the bedroom.

The first is white, around 5ft 7ins tall, of very slim build, and was wearing a long-sleeved black top with a red design and a head and neck cover. The screwdriver he used had a dark red handle and was up to 14 ins long.

The second man is white, around 6ft tall, of slim build and between 35 and 38 years old. He is clean shaven with dark hair, and wore a light long-sleeved button-up shirt with dark blue trousers. He was carrying a large knife.

Dc Trevor Clarke of Colchester CID, said: “This was a very frightening incident, which left the victim physically unharmed but understandably shaken.

“We are also looking for a dark coloured Audi A3 on a 14 plate believed to have been used by the suspects.

“We are progressing various lines of enquiry and would urge anyone who may have witnessed the incident, has information about those responsible or has CCTV or dash cam footage, to get in touch with us without delay.”

Contact 101 with any information.