FOUR thieves wearing balaclavas carried out a night raid on Parry's Jewellers in Malvern's Church Street.

Police say three men smashed two large panes of glass and stole a quantity of jewellery before making off in a gold-coloured 'Vauxhall type' vehicle driven by another person. The incident took place on Tuesday at 12.30am

Shop proprietor David Siviter said that the shop had been empty at the time, with most of the precious stock locked up in a safe.

He said: "They didn't take very much. The damage was worse than the loss. They took a few wedding rings and some lower value jewellery. It seems odd that they would go to such lengths to attack it when there was nothing there."

The burglars also failed to completely smash the glass, specially made for security purposes.

"The holes in the window were only big enough to get their hands in anyway," Mr Siviter said. "The cost of repairs will be in the thousands. It's a real inconvenience.

"I don't think they knew what they were looking for or they wouldn't have done it. The blinds are down at night so they couldn't see the displays.

"I certainly didn't expect it. We've had nothing quite like this happen before."

PC Claire Baker described it as an "audacious raid" and appealed for witnesses on 01905 723888 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.