UPDATED: Video appears to show Maldon jewellery store suspected armed robbers fleeing on moped

VIDEO footage has emerged that appears to show two men suspected of raiding three watches, worth around £70,000, from a Maldon jewellers making their escape on a moped.

The short clip shows the moped speed left from the High Street into Butt Lane, near the Rose and Crown pub and Mitchells Jewellers, which Essex Police has confirmed was robbed by armed raiders this morning.

The man on the rear of the moped is seen to throw something at a man in a high-visibility top as the bike turns, before it has to avoid a woman walking in the road.

Essex News and Investigations exclusively revealed this morning how drama unfolded and a police helicopter was seen hovering over Maldon High Street following reports of the raid on the jewellery shop.

The chopper was seen searching above the High Street from 11.25am with police cars on sirens also in the area.

Essex Police cars, including a forensic unit (above), were later seen parked by Mitchells Jewellers, where the window on the door had been smashed (below).

An Essex Police spokesman initially described the incident as a burglary saying: "We have received a number of calls regarding an incident in Maldon High Street.

"Shortly after 10.15am, it was reported that a burglary was taking place at a shop.

"Officers were at the scene within minutes. Thankfully there are no reports of any injuries.

"This is an ongoing incident, and we will provide an update as soon as we practically can."

SNAPPED: The chopper seen today above Maldon

However, there were unconfirmed posts on Facebook that the shop was targeted by two men on mopeds with a machete.

One Facebook user posted: "Two guys on mopeds robbed the jewellers on the high street. Was scary to see. One had a big machete. Luckily no one hurt."

Another user claimed crime is on the increase across Maldon since the town has been expanded through major housing development.

He posted: "Seems that the increasing size of the town is increasing the crime rate. Never had this problem with criminal activity a few years ago before the expansion of housing in the district."

Essex Police has confirmed a robbery took place in an updated statement.

It said: "We are investigating an armed robbery which took place shortly after 10.15am today, Wednesday 30 March.

Two men wearing dark clothing and dark motorcycle helmets pulled up outside Mitchell’s Jewellery in Maldon High Street. The men were riding a small dark motorcycle.

One of the men forced entry into the jewellers and stole three watches, valued in the region of £70,000. Both suspects then left the scene on the motorcycle travelling down Butt Lane.

A widespread search took place but at this time no arrests have been made and our enquiries are ongoing.

We need anyone who saw anything, has any CCTV, doorbell or dash cam footage of the incident to contact us."

If you have any information you can submit a report online at https://www.essex.police.uk or use the 'Live Chat' button to speak to an online operator between 7am-11pm.

You can also call 101. Please quote incident 318 of Wednesday 30 March.

You can also call us on 101 or contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.