A resident has revealed how a dozen people tried to scare off a gang who were in the process of raiding a Co-operative store.

Onlookers shouted at the thieves as they brazenly tried to steal a cash machine from Denholme Co-op in the early hours of the morning.

Residents living near the mini market rushed into the streets as the gang targeted the store.

They tried to frighten off the gang by calling the police, but the four men in hoodies continued with their attempted heist.

The gang was eventually forced to flee empty-handed after a chain pulling the cash machine – which was inside the store – snapped. The drama began just before 1am on Saturday when residents of Buck Street heard noises from the nearby Co-operative Food Store.

One of the residents, a Co-op staff member who does not wish to be named, said she heard an “almighty crash”.

When she went outside she saw men – who had a 4x4 vehicle believed to be a Mitsubishi Shogun – ripping open the shutters that covered the Co-op’s front doors.

The woman said: “They were all in hoodies so it was difficult to see anything and it was dark, but it was four young males. When they pulled the shutter it ripped up from the ground. It was enough for them to get behind.

“They had a great big chain. As they pulled the cash machine out, the chains broke.”

The woman said about 12 people from nearby terraced houses watched as the raid unfolded.

She said: “My husband shouted ‘the police are coming!’, but that didn’t deter them.”

The woman said the gang drove off towards Stradmore Grove, and it is believed they swapped vehicles near the Royal pub before escaping the village.

The Co-op reopened on Saturday afternoon following emergency repairs.

A spokesman for Airedale and North Bradford Police said the cash machine was found only yards away from the shop with its money still inside.