A masked man wielding a machete targeted a security driver and stole cash during a daylight robbery at a petrol station.

Officers were called to the Shell Garage, on Malling Road, Snodland, at around 9am, after the driver of a Loomis van was threatened by two men.

The two suspects are believed to have fled in a van and forensic investigators are working to track them down.

Bethany Sterrett, who lives in nearby Lakeside, received a phone call from her sister who works at the garage at around 9am.

The 22-year-old was told to be careful after a man with a machete stole money from the security van driver.

She said: "My sister rang me straight away telling me to be careful because there is a man with a machete and a mask and there was a robbery on the Loomis van.

"The man came through the fence at the end of my road because it is a shortcut. My mum saw a few guys in a van and the were gone after it happened.

"They must have had it all planned because how else would they know where to park?"

A spokesman for Kent Police said: "We were called to a service station in Malling Road, Snodland at 9.20am following a report of a robbery.

"It is reported that a security van driver was threatened by two men who stole the case of cash he was carrying.

"Officers have cordoned off the scene and are working to locate the suspects who were said to have left in a van."

Detective Inspector James Derham said: "We are keen to hear from anyone who may have witnessed this incident. In particular, we would like to hear from motorists who have dashcam footage taken in the area at around the time of the robbery."