MASKED raiders emptied a cashpoint and fled with £22,000 after a burglary at a Hampshire service station.

The gang cut phone lines and alarms before using special cutting equipment to burn through the solid steel back of the machine in the daring early morning crime.

The nature of the offence in Ringwood has led police to believe the gang of four must have carried out similar crimes in the past.

Now the owner of Moortown Service Station in Christchurch Road has appealed for information which may see the burglars brought to justice.

Owner Jeff Coy said staff discovered the offence when they arrived for work at around 6am.

"They cut a hole in the back of the cashpoint and then managed to open the door and get the money out," he told the Daily Echo.

"It must have created a lot of noise and a lot of smoke but they made sure they disabled the smoke alarms before they started.

"Nothing else was touched. They have obviously done it before - it was slick."

He said CCTV footage shows dark shapes moving around the floor, "a bit like the SAS" but does not show any faces or give any information about the offenders.

The crime took place in the early hours of Monday morning but details have only just been released.

Hampshire Police have appealed for anyone who was in the area around the time of the crime, at 3.30am, to get in touch with PC David Hatton at Lymington police station.

Call him on 0845 045 4545 or the anonymous Crimestoppers line on 0800 555 111.