A jewellers has been attacked again by sledgehammer wielding smash-and-grab robbers, who escaped on a scooter after quick-thinking staff thwarted their efforts.

The windows at Ratnam Jewellers in Burlington Road, New Malden, were repeatedly hit with sledgehammers by two men at 11am on Friday, January 29.

It is the second time in little more than a month that the jewellers, owned by Ratnam Sanmugananthan, 62, has been attacked.

They arrived by motorised scooter, driven over the footbridge of the A3 and along Queens Road.

But when they started trying to reach inside, staff activated the window shutters, which forced the men to drop their sledgehammers and escape down Queens Road towards the A3.

The driver was between 16 and 18-years old, with a black crash helmet, black “Puffa” jacket and dark trousers.

His passenger was the same age and wore a purple or claret hooded top.

The attempted robbery is the latest targeting jewellers in the Kingston area.

Before Christmas, sledgehammer wielding robbers got away with £6,000 to £7,000 of stock from Ratnam.

A lone woman in FP Turner and Sons, in Victoria Road, Surbiton, was targeted the day before, and the robbers got rings from the window display.

Shoppers and security guards in Kingston town centre lined up and tried to kick robbers off their motorcycle in September, as they raced down Clarence Street after robbing expensive watches from Ernest Jones.

If you have information contact Detective Constable Norman at Kingston CID on 020 8247 4945 or anonymously at Crimestoppers on 0800 555111.

Get crime statistics for your area at kingstonguardian.co.uk/li