A bank robber who threatened staff with a knife has been jailed for three years.

Zhoa Wan, 29, of Sigrist Square in Kingston, forced cashiers to hand over nearly £2,000 cash at a bank in Hounslow in February.

Detective Constable Alex George, from the Metropolitan Police flying squad, said: "This was a frightening ordeal for the members of staff who were threatened with a knife for Wan’s financial gain."

Wan initially told staff he was waiting for someone when he entered the bank in High Street, Hounslow.

But he walked up to cashiers brandishing a large kitchen knife, forcing them to hand over cash that he stashed in a black bag.

A member of staff challenged him as he left, but Wan held the knife in front of him and said: "Get out of my way."

Investigators found a CCTV image of Wan smoking a cigarette.

They recovered the cigarette butt and found Wan's DNA on it.

Officers also used CCTV to find out where the robber had been living.

Wan surrendered to police at Hounslow on February 22, 10 days after the robbery.

He was sentenced at Kingston Crown Court on Monday after entering a guilty plea.