Detectives are appealing for witnesses after a hotel worker was threatened at gunpoint during an armed robbery.The robbery at the Woodland Lodge Hotel on Thetford Road, Northwold, near Thetford, occurred shortly after 11pm last night .

Detectives are appealing for witnesses after a hotel worker was threatened at gunpoint during an armed robbery.

The robbery at the Woodland Lodge Hotel on Thetford Road, Northwold, near Thetford, occurred shortly after 11pm last night .

Four masked men, three carrying shotgun-style weapons and another armed with an axe, entered the hotel and threatened the male worker who was ordered to open a safe.

The men made off with a quantity of cash, leaving the scene in a dark-coloured “rounded-shaped” saloon car, possibly a Volvo Estate. The victim was uninjured but has been left extremely shaken as a result.

Neither the vehicle nor the offenders were found despite an extensive area search by police units. An investigation has been launched and detectives will be carrying out enquiries today.

The four offenders were all white, two were described as “young, slim and athletic” while one offender was described as “fat, with a beer belly” and thought to be approximately 40 years old.

Police spokeswoman Beth Manning said: “This was an extremely frightening incident for the victim who thankfully escaped unhurt.

“We are appealing for any witnesses to suspicious activity or vehicles seen in the area in the run up to the robbery, to the car leaving the scene with the four men or anyone with any further information about this offence to contact police immediately.”

Investigating officer Det Con Ian Young can be contacted at Downham Market CID on 0845 456 4567.

Alternatively, information can be passed to police anonymously by calling Crimestoppers on 0800 555111.