Quick-thinking sales assistant Sheena Tolley stopped an armed raider who pointed a gun at her by pushing him out of the door.

She was confronted by the man who burst into Claydon Jewellers, The Arcade, Bognor, at 2pm. Sheena, 40, was in the shop on her own when the man walked in and asked to look at some gold watches.

He walked off when Sheena went to answer the phone, saying he would return in ten minutes. He came back and asked her to open the safe but when she refused, he pulled a gun from a briefcase and pointed it in her face.

But terrified Sheena, her heart racing, calmly pushed him out of the door before locking it. The raider was left with no choice but to flee empty-handed with a younger accomplice.

Sheena returned to work this morning but admitted the shock was beginning to sink in. She said: "I still can't believe it all happened. I was very calm at the time but I did not have much of a chance to think. It really only hit me last night that I had actually faced a man with a gun and pushed him out of the shop.

"Now, when I think about it, it was quite a silly thing to do because I had no idea if the gun was loaded or not. I just pushed him out and locked the door. He seemed angry and tried to push it open again but could not get in, so he put the gun back in his briefcase and ran off."

Detectives believe the attempted robbery could be linked to a similar incident at jewellers Nicholas and Company in Queensway, Bognor, a week ago. A man threatened staff with a shotgun and escaped with a large amount of cash and jewellery.

The robber in yesterday's incident was in his late forties, 6ft, of medium build, with medium-length dark hair and wearing a navy blue pinstripe suit with a dark shirt and tie. His accomplice was between 16 and 18, had short, cropped ginger hair and was wearing jeans and a black top.

A police spokesman said: "We would not recommend approaching anyone who is armed but the worker's quick action clearly stopped what would have been a second large robbery in the town in a week. We warn all jewellery shops in the area to be on their guard."

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