The owner of a jewellery store says he saw his life flash before his eyes during a £35,000 armed robbery.

Jeffrey Hersheson, 61, suffered an angina attack after he was held up at gunpoint at Hallmarks jeweller's in Union Street, Brighton.

Police are appealing for witnesses to the raid, which happened at 4.20pm on Friday.

Mr Hersheson said: "He asked to see a ring and when I went to the window I felt something in my ribs. It was a sawn-off shotgun.

"He told me to empty the tray but I could only take things out one by one because the tray can't be moved.

"I started to feel very faint and he became angry and raised his fist. Then he just grabbed handfuls and put them in a carrier bag."

The robber made off with a haul of rare gem-encrusted jewellery thought to be worth about £35,000.

Mr Hersheson said: "I am pretty shaken-up. I keep reliving it in my mind. When it happened I saw the faces of my little boys and other things and the adrenaline brought on my angina.

"I buzzed this person in because he looked reasonably OK. There is a risk in this business most people can't understand. You can't do anything about an armed robbery."

Among the items stolen were an uncut dome-shaped ruby ring worth about £5,000, heart and pear-shaped diamond pendants and a pair of ruby rings.

The raider was white, in his mid to late 20s, 5ft 6in to 5ft 8in tall with mousy coloured hair. He wore a calf-length grey woollen coat.

Police want to hear from anyone who saw the robber flee towards Ship Street. Call Detective Constable Sam Smith on 0845 6070999.