Girl, 11, throws loaf of bread at armed robber Published duration 17 September 2019

media caption Your money or your loaf: The armed robber fled after being chased off by a girl and her dad

An armed robber's attempt to rob a corner shop was thwarted when an 11-year-old girl and her dad pelted him with bread and bottles of squash.

CCTV shows the knife-wielding man bursting into the shop in Worthing, Sussex, slicing at the air as he advances towards the till.

He appears to recoil as he is hit by the items, then leaves empty-handed.

Police said the half-baked bandit bottled it when customers threw "squash and a loaf of bread" at him.

'Fleeing in panic'

The Sussex force praised the "bravery" of the girl and said officers were following a breadcrumb trail of clues in a bid to trace the suspect.

No-one was hurt during the botched raid at Express Supermarket in Newlands Road at about 22:00 BST on Monday.

image copyright Google image caption The raider fled empty-handed from the Express Supermarket in Newlands Road

Det Con Noel Simmonds admitted it was "tempting to just view the spectacle of an armed robber fleeing in panic from a young girl", but raised concerns that the suspect could strike again if not stopped.

"Next time someone could be seriously hurt," he said.