A man is alleged to have reached over the counter and snatched a handful of cash in Corals bookmakers, in King Oswy Drive, Hartlepool.

Staff and customers have been described by police as "distressed" by the incident, although no weapons or violence were involved and the man did not make demands.

Detective Sergeant Lee Rukin, of Hartlepool CID, said: "The call came in at 3pm on Friday. There was a report of a man who reached over the counter and has taken a quantity of cash in the region of £200.

"A man was subsequently arrested on Saturday morning and charged."

A spokesman for Coral said: "When this happens, our security team will go down to the shop and make sure that staff are comforted and looked after and given all the assistance they need to deal with the incident.

The other thing is to liaise with police to give them any assistance they might need, those are our two priorities."

A 33-year-old Hartlepool man will appear at Hartlepool Magistrates' Court today charged with burglary.

Any witnesses are urged to contact Det Sgt Rukin at Hartlepool CID on (01642) 302133.