ARMED robbers threatened to break the legs of a 72-year-old attendant at a York petrol station.

The pair of balaclava-clad raiders - one armed with what appeared to be a handgun and the other with a pickaxe handle - had waited for attendant Walter Calderhead, from York, as he closed up the Costcutter filling station in Hull Road, Dunnington, just after 11pm last night.

They sprang from the shadows and confronted Mr Calderhead as he went to get into his car, which was parked at the back of the forecourt.

They threatened him and forced him to open up the shop and, once inside, they demanded money from the safe.

But the attendant told them he could not open it as there was no key kept on the premises. Instead, they stole £150 from the till and cigarettes worth nearly £3,000.

They removed the tapes from the shop's CCTV system and took Mr Calderhead's car keys.

The robbers then sped off in his blue Nissan Micra, which was found dumped a few hundred metres down the road with some of the stolen cigarettes left in the back.

Filling station manager Ian Taylor said Mr Calderhead had been left shaken by the raid but was hoping to return to work later today.

He said: "He's an old soldier and he has taken it all pretty well. He was a bit shocked but he seems to be okay. At least they didn't hurt him."

The pair had been lurking in the darkness at the premises of neighbouring Philip Welch Specialist Cars before they pounced on the elderly attendant.

Mr Taylor added: "He told me they threatened to break his legs. I think that shows what sort of bottle these people have got.

"We want them to be caught as soon as possible to stop this happening to anyone else."

Updated: 14:08 Monday, December 03, 2001