An armed man in Brazil has stolen an 18-carat gold-plated vibrator selling for $4,000 (£2,600) at a luxury sex shop.

Police say he walked into the Erotica Luxo store in Brasilia, tied up a sales assistant and took the item from its display case. He stole nothing else.

It's high season for erotic shops in Brazil as it celebrates its own version of Valentine's Day in less than two weeks.

Store owner Vanessa Baldini told the G1 news website the robber might get no satisfaction from Wednesday's theft – the Swedish-made sex toy has a stainless steel core, making it difficult to remove the gold plating.

And, she noted, the robber forgot to take the vibrator's charger.

"I really don't know what he'll do," she said. "I'll leave it up to his imagination."