Detectives investigating an armed robbery in Buxton, have released the CCTV footage of theincident, which seen a family being held captive in their own home. Since the robbery aired on BBC’s Crimewatch programmeon Wednesday, informing the public of the thousands of pounds worth of jewellery and precious metals stole, officers have now started to follow up several new lines of inquiry.

Roughly 25 calls have been received from members of the public following the show, in which the family spoke out about their ordeal and a reconstruction of the robbery was portrayed. On November 19, around 5.30pm, 5 men armed with knives broke into a house on Springdale and held a man along with 3 children captive. The offenders had searched the entire house before stealing jewellery and then making the man drive to his place of work on the Staden Lane Industrial Estate in his white Mercedes.

The 3 children, two aged 12 and the other aged 8, remained in the house with 3 of the offenders and were tied up with cable ties. More property was stolen from the business premises before the suspects finally returned to the house reuniting the man with the children. The offenders, who were wearing balaclavas and dark clothing, drove off in the Mercedes and the other family car, a silver Toyota Rav, both of which were later found abandoned in Buxton.

Detective Chief Inspector Gareth Meadows, who appeared live in the Crimewatch studio, said: “There are a number of points key to the investigation that we would like to make the public aware of. “These include strong connections to the Manchester area; one of the offenders wore Adidas tracksuit bottoms with three white stripes down the legs; the distinctive red and black gloves worn by offenders and one of the men had a white Trespass logo on the back of his jacket. We would also like people to think if there is anyone they know who may have come into some money before Christmas and perhaps spent a considerable amount on presents.”

Three men, who were arrested in December in connection with the armed robbery, have all been released on police bail. A reward of up to £25,000 has been offered through Crimestoppers for any information that can lead to the arrest and charge of the offenders.