Man arrested over sweet shop robbery

Police are investigating whether a man who pointed a gun at a child while robbing a south Belfast sweet shop is behind two other armed robberies.

The man, believed to be in his teens, robbed a shop near the Ravenhill/Ormeau Road junction at 1500 GMT on Monday.

A short time later, a newsagent's in the Saintfield Road area was robbed by a man thought to be carrying a firearm.

A garage on Saintfield Road was robbed at 2140 GMT. A 19-year-old man is being questioned about the incidents.

In the first robbery, the man pointed a gun at a primary school girl and told the female owner of the shop to hand over the contents of a cash register.

Another child, a boy aged under five, was also in the shop at the time.

The robber, who escaped on foot with cash, was last seen on the Ormeau Road.

Children

Police are investigating whether the same man was behind a robbery in the nearby Saintfield Road area at 1525 GMT, just as children were leaving local schools for the day.

A man, believed to be carrying a firearm, placed a rucksack on the counter and demanded cash and cigarettes.

Detectives believe the same man was behind a robbery in a nearby garage six hours later.

The robber again placed a rucksack on the counter and demanded cash and cigarettes before running off.

On Tuesday, SDLP South Belfast MP Alasdair McDonnell said he was horrified at the incident.

He said: "All robberies are abhorrent but this has a sinister and deeply worrying twist."

Police have appealed for anyone with information to contact them.