THUGS in black bike suits armed with a gun stormed a house, attacked two women and stole jewellery in Southend.

The shocking incident took place at 8.30pm on Saturday at an address in St Augustine's Avenue.

The two men, dressed in black motorcycle suits and helmets, forced their way into the home and hit the two women in the property at the time, aged in their 70s, with what was described as a small black handgun.

One of the men was described by witnesses as white and of a large build and wore boxing-style shoes, whilst the other was described as thinner and slightly shorter and wore white and black trainers.

They were both wearing identical black padded motorcycle suits, which had a thin grey stripe across the shoulders and chest, along with black helmets with clear visors.

The men stole jewellery and a handbag and left.

Officers and paramedics arrived and the women were taken to hospital and treated for non-life threatening or changing injuries.

Investigating Officer Detective Sergeant Chris Adam said: "This was a distressing attack which target vulnerable members of our community.

"I would like to thank all those who have already come forward and provided information about the incident, but we are still keen to hear from anyone who hasn't spoken to us yet and may have information that could help us find those responsible.

"This was understandably a very traumatic experience for the victims and we want to ensure the offenders are brought to justice.

"Our officers will be conducting extra patrols in the area today, so if you have any information or concerns, please come and talk to us.

"If you were in the area around this time and saw anyone matching this description or any suspicious behaviour, please contact the Southend CID team on 101, quoting crime reference 42/115673/19.

People can also call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 or visit crimestoppers-uk.org.