WHEN masked gunmen burst into a Ladbrokes in Old Basford it was just the first in a series of city-wide raids.

Three men threatened staff and escaped with cash as terrified customers looked on.

Detective Chief Inspector Mick Luke said: "We have been reviewing CCTV and looking at what they [the offenders] are wearing, the days of the week the raids happened and how they left each scene.

"The raids are all completely different – but we are investigating any links to see if we have the same group or same offenders committing these crimes.

"We will coordinate all the different raids together and are working with the bookmakers on this."

Detective Sergeant Justine Wilson is heading up the investigation team at Radford Road Police Station.

She said: "The victims are really, really frightened and shook up.

"We are trying to push the button of people to see if anyone knows the offenders."

DCI Luke added that motives for the raids were yet unknown.

He said: "Bookmakers normally hold small amounts and the motive behind stealing the money could be to buy drugs, pay bills or shopping for Christmas.

"Sometimes if they don't get what they expect they will look to commit another one fairly shortly.

"They are looking to a long time in prison if they are caught for these – especially if firearms are involved.

"We cannot tell if they are real or not – but people should err on the side of caution.

"We don't want customers getting involved, they should just back off."

DS Wilson added that they were keen for any witnesses or anyone with information to come forward.

She said: "These offences all occurred in less than a month.

"There has got to be some preparatory work and that's the key time when people would have seen them [the offenders] looking.

"People might have dismissed it but we want them to rewind their mind – did they see people outside any of these bookmakers hours before the incidents?"

The reward of up to £10,000 is being offered by the Association of British Bookmakers (ABB) for any information that could lead to the arrest and conviction of any of the raiders.

And Robin Hutchison, from Ladbrokes, said that security across the Nottingham branches was being reviewed.

He said: "It's standard practice when raids of this nature have happened that we look at the security we have got in place and anything we can do.

"The safety of our staff and customers is our first priority."

"We had issues in Nottingham which we were hoping were a thing of the past but obviously they are an issue again."

Anyone with information is asked to call Notts Police on 0115 967 0999.

Or Crimestoppers free and anonymously on 0800 555 111.

tanya.holden@nottinghameveningpost.co.uk