Two armed men escaped with jewellery worth more than £200,000 yesterday in a raid on a Galway city centre shop.
The men, wearing balaclavas and armed with a revolver and a sawn-off shotgun, entered Hart man's jewellery shop on William Street at 5 p.m. and ordered staff and customers to lie on the floor.
They forced a staff member to open a display case and hand over a number of trays of diamond rings, which they put into a black plastic bag. No one was injured in the raid.
The men escaped in a car, parked close to the shop, which had been stolen in Salthill on Monday. A Garda spokesman at Mill Street station said that the car was a blue Subaru Impreza. The men were last seen driving in the direction of Headford.
The Garda spokesman said it was not known exactly how much the stolen items were worth, but the figure was likely to be in excess of £200,000.
Gardai believe the incident may be connected to the theft of another car, a silver Nissan Primera, in Salthill on Sunday night. Both vehicles were being sought last night.
While local involvement in the robbery was not being ruled out, the spokesman said it was possible the men were from outside the area. It was also possible that they had bought a can of petrol in the Galway area earlier yesterday, he added.
"We will be checking all the petrol stations in the area, but it would be helpful if anyone who thinks they might have sold the can contacted us," he said.
Detailed descriptions of the men were not available, but one was stocky in build and about 5 feet 10 inches, while the other was described as thin and about 6 feet in height.
Gardai have asked anyone with information to contact the Mill Street incident room at 091538070 or any Garda station.
