An armed robbery by a masked, knife-wielding raider has rocked residents of a quiet Perth community.
Under cover of darkness, the thief entered the Co-op store on Oakbank Road on Sunday and forced terrified staff to hand over a three-figure sum of cash from the till.
It is the second such incident in two years.
No one was injured by the man, who quickly escaped the scene.
Police Scotland scoured the surrounding area, rousing neighbouring residents.
Officers are now appealing for witnesses who may have seen the raider, who had covered his face with a red handkerchief.
CCTV footage is also being examined.
Local resident Dougie Younger said he had been horrified to hear of the robbery as his wife Margaret is employed at the shop, though she was not working at the time.
“This is the second robbery at knifepoint in just two years and it is worrying,” he said.
“My wife got a real fright when the police came to the door, thinking about what her colleagues must have gone through.
“It is a vulnerable shop as it is open until 10pm in a quiet area where things can go unseen and it’s often female members of staff that are on until closing.
“It’s a sign of the times. It used to be that shops could open all hours without any problems but those days are past.”
Mr Younger added: “Margaret was so worried about her colleagues but thankfully she knows that no one was hurt, though they must have had a real fright.
“Neighbours have been fantastic. They’ve been popping round to see that she is OK and check on the staff who were there.” One female resident who lives near the store said she remembered seeing a suspicious young man “hanging around” the shop around an hour before the robbery took place.
She said: “He was smoking a cigarette outside and I can’t put my finger on it but there just seemed to be something off about him. He looked out of place.”
One 72-year-old resident said he and his wife had moved to the area to escape such incidents but now knew that nowhere was wholly safe.
“We moved to the area around a year ago, as we thought it would be a quiet residential area and it has been, relatively speaking.
“Like everywhere, you do come across people who have problems with alcohol or drugs you see some of them causing trouble at the shop.
“There are so many clowns in the world now. It is ridiculous that you are not even safe to walk around the streets of your own neighbourhood any more.”
Another woman spoke for many of her neighbours when she said: “It sounds like a clich but it’s so quiet around here that you just don’t expect something like this to happen.
“It’s such a nice residential area. Hopefully, the police catch the person responsible as soon as possible.”
The male armed robber is described as being around 6ft and of medium build and was using the red handkerchief to mask his identity.
He was wearing a dark grey or blue hooded top beneath a dark top, together with light blue faded jeans and dirty white shoes.
Anyone who has information regarding the incident or the identity of the robber is asked to call Police Scotland on 101 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.
Staff at the Oakbank Road store declined to comment.
However, a spokesperson for Co-operative Food said: “A man entered our Oakbank Road store at about 9.30pm on Sunday night and threatened a member of staff with a knife before escaping with a quantity of cash from the till.
“No one was hurt, although the member of staff involved was badly shaken by the experience.
“There were no customers in the store at the time. CCTV footage has been given to the police, who are investigating and as with any incident such as this, we would appeal for anyone with information to come forward.”