Updated: STAFF at a petrol station in Selby thwarted an attempted armed robbery – for the second time in four months.

The latest offence took place at Millgate Service Station, at about 9.40pm on Monday, when a man carrying a knife with a short blade entered the shop.

He approached the counter and demanded money from the cashier, who refused to hand any over and triggered an alarm, which caused the suspect to leave empty-handed and on foot towards Selby.

Detective Sergeant Ash Khan, of Selby CID, said: “This was a distressing incident which naturally left the woman working behind the counter shaken and upset.

“I am appealing to anyone with information about this attempted robbery to come forward to the police as a matter of urgency.”

The suspect was described as white, in his mid-20s, about six feet tall with a stocky build, and wearing a white t-shirt over a red or burgundy top.

He also wore a royal blue ‘beanie’ style hat as a balaclava with eyeholes cut in it, blue trousers, brown shoes and blue latex gloves.

This attempt follows an incident in February, when two employees at the station fended off a similarly-armed would-be robber.

The criminal, who was armed with a knife, ordered 63-year-old manageress June Cawkill to hand over the money in the till, but lost his nerve when she grabbed a pair of scissors and told him to get out.

As he weighed up his options, Norma Doherty, also 63, hit him with a plastic bottle of cleaning fluid, and the pair chased him out of the shop.

A spokeswoman for the service station said that the woman who was working during Monday’s incident was not June or Norma, but confirmed nobody was hurt in the incident.

A police spokesman said nobody had been arrested for either incident, and urged anyone with information to contact Selby police on 0845 6060247, or Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555111.