DETECTIVES are continuing their hunt for a gunman and his female accomplice who attempted to rob a village sub post office while it was full of Christmas shoppers.

The gunman and the woman entered the post office at Shalmsford Street, Chartham, near Canterbury at about 11.15am on Saturday. While the woman demanded cash from the till, the man went to the counter and pointed a gun at postmaster Bryan Currie.

Mr Currie hit the alarm button and the pair fled empty-handed and sped off in an old style red Astra. No shots were fired and no one was hurt.

Mr Currie's wife, Donna, who was out shopping at the time with the couple's seven-year-old son, said: "The man told Bryan he had a gun and to put the money in a bag. He pointed the gun at my husband who pushed the alarm button. It was rather an amateurish raid.

"The woman bolted the shop door and tried to get money from the till but the cashier locked it so it couldn't be opened. When the alarm sounded, the man ran to the door, but he couldn't get out because his accomplice had bolted it. He shook the door so hard it broke the safety glass. He then managed to unbolt the door and they both drove off in a red Astra towards the A28."

Mrs Currie said this was the first nasty incident she and her husband had suffered since taking over the post office two-and-a-half years ago. Her daughter of 12 was at home when the raiders struck.

Mrs Currie said her husband stayed open until the police arrived and shut the shop. It re-opened again at 2.30pm.

The two raiders are said to be in their thirties and dark skinned. The man had a silver handgun. Police have asked anyone with information about the raid to contact Det Sgt Graeme Dinsdale on 01227 762055.