The attack took place at 10.34am on Paved Court in Richmond, a pedestrianised street known to fans of the TV series Ted Lasso as the fictional home of the show’s lead character.
According to police, the two hooded suspects used a sledgehammer to smash the front window of Gregory & Co, before grabbing jewellery and fleeing the scene on foot.
Footage circulating on social media shows one of the men repeatedly striking the shopfront with the sledgehammer while the second scoops valuables into a blue bag. Staff inside the store can be seen attempting to deter the attackers as the raid unfolds.
The pair then ran towards Richmond Green, prompting bystanders to call emergency services. No injuries were reported, and no arrests have yet been made.
The Metropolitan Police confirmed the incident is being treated as an aggravated burglary.
One witness told the Daily Mail: “They appeared out of nowhere carrying a large sledgehammer and a bag, and immediately started smashing the window.”
The robbery is the latest in a growing spate of smash-and-grab attacks targeting jewellery stores across the capital.
Just two days earlier, a group of men targeted Sultan Jewellery on Uxbridge Road in Shepherd’s Bush, again using a sledgehammer to break the shop’s windows. Police arrived at that scene within three minutes and arrested a 33-year-old man on suspicion of aggravated burglary. He remains in custody, while other suspects escaped.
The latest incident also comes as detectives continue to search for suspects linked to a high-profile robbery at a Rolex boutique in Knightsbridge earlier this month.
In that attack, six suspects wearing motorcycle helmets rammed a stolen motorcycle into the Bucherer Rolex store at One Hyde Park, threatening staff and members of the public with weapons including machetes before fleeing with watches worth tens of thousands of pounds. The group abandoned the motorcycle inside the shop and escaped on mopeds. No injuries were reported, and the suspects remain at large.
Police investigations into all incidents are ongoing.
