PUB landlords and managers in Bolton and Bury were today warned to be on their guard after a spate of closing-time robberies.

Detectives believe one gang may be targeting pubs and clubs, striking as the licensees are cashing-up for the night.

In the latest attack, armed raiders ran into a pub and threatened staff before escaping with cash and mobile phones.

The three men kicked down the door of the Waterside Inn, Summerseat, Bury, before threatening staff with a crowbar, knife and a cosh.

The masked raiders ordered staff to open the safe before running away with money and three mobile phones at 11.20pm on Monday.

The same gang may also be responsible for a robbery in June when the assistant manager of a Radcliffe pub was hit on the legs with a hammer while members of his staff were held at knifepoint.

Staff at the Ainsworth Arms in Bolton and Bury Road had been enjoying a drink after the Queen's Golden Jubilee celebrations when five masked men burst into the bar area.

The raiders, armed with a machete, a hammer, a large wrench and a truncheon, threatened the staff and ordered the assistant manager to go upstairs to the cash office and open the safe. The pub boss did not have the key and was struck several times on the legs with a hammer by two members of the gang.

When they realised the safe could not be opened, the raiders grabbed a small quantity of money, believed to be less than £100, from the tills before escaping in a vehicle.

In a similar raid, staff and customers at a pub in Prestwich were forced to the floor and robbed at gunpoint during an armed robbery earlier this year. The landlord of the Park Hotel in Lowther Road, Tony Frain, had a knife held to his head and was frogmarched to his office and forced to open the safe.

A total of £3,000 in cash was taken, together with the wallets, jewellery and mobile phones of customers.

Warning local licensees today, PC John Flowers, of Bury police, said: "Licensees should be vigilant after hours and make sure there is no-one on the premises who should not be. They should also keep any CCTV security system in operation."