Dylans Wine Merchant shares terrifying moments armed robbers raided his Sketty business

A SWANSEA shopkeeper has shared the terrifying moments armed robbers raided his business.

Dylans Wine Merchants owner Steve Ashborn was threatened with a sawn-off shotgun during the ordeal at his shop in Sketty.

The father-of-two was told he had been watched by the robbers who said they were aware of his business set-up and where he lived.

Mr Ashborn was working alone on Saturday, February 2 when the incident began at around 11.30am.

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He had just made a cup of coffee when the first of two men entered the shop.

Mr Ashborn said: "In this business you do get unsavoury characters that come in.

"It was quite cold and I had made reference to the cold weather and he did as well.

"That was when he made visible the sawn-off shotgun.

"He brought it out and he was anxious to make sure there was nobody coming in.

"He looked out the window and then said all he was interested in was the money and he wanted me to open the safe.

"Then the second man came in."

Mr Ashborn does not have a safe on his premises and added: "I have been in this business for 25 years and we were trained from the very beginning if anything like this happens to co-operate because it is not worth the potential harm that could come to you.

"I took them to the back and showed them there was no safe and gave them the cash from the previous night's takings."

The raiders then asked for the keys to a van belonging to Dylans before smashing a video tape from the store's CCTV system and making their getaway in the vehicle which was later recovered by police less than two miles away that day.

Mr Ashborn said: "One thing they said which was more alarming than anything was that they knew the set-up of the business and knew about our shop in Gorseinon and that they had been watching me and following me and knew where I lived.

"That did alarm me a bit.

"The next thing I did was to phone home.

"My wife was at home and I suggested that she left the house for a bit.

"I wasn't quite sure whether they (the armed robbers) had taken my house keys.

"It transpired afterwards, when the police got here, that for some reason I had taken the van key off my house keys.

"I must have done that subconsciously."

Mr Ashborn spent the rest of the day speaking with police officers and returned to work on the following Monday.

A spokesman for South Wales Police said: "Extensive inquiries are still ongoing and a dedicated team of detectives remains attached to the investigation."

Mr Ashborn has since installed a digital surveillance system at his shop in Sketty and added: "Customers say it is terrible what happened but to be honest I didn't come to any harm and I wasn't pushed or hit though I thought I may have been."