Thieves stole £100,000 of photographic equipment during a raid on a High Street store.

Hundreds of items were stolen from the Southend branch of Jessops, including cameras, video cameras and memory cards.

The crooks broke into a storeroom at the back of the shop which contained a selection of boxed products waiting to be sold. It happened between 6pm and 6.40pm, on Sunday.

It is believed they then loaded up a vehicle with the gear before making their getaway.

The burglars caused £1,000 of damage by breaking through a door during the raid.

Staff initially estimated the haul to be around £50,000, but once they had time to record everything missing, the figure doubled.

A Jessops spokeswoman said: "They took something of everything, boxed and brand new.

"It is all values of products, but the most expensive is about £3,000."

Despite the loss, the shop was open for business yesterday.

Police believe some of the items stolen will be offered for sale in the south Essex area and have warned people to be suspicious if they are offered cameras or photographic equipment.

Julia Pack, Southend police spokeswoman, said: "There was a large number of items stolen during this burglary so it is likely people may be offered them for sale in the local area.

"We would ask anyone who is offered new-looking Jessops products under suspicious circumstances, such as at boot sales or in pubs, to contact the police."

Anyone with information on the crime should telephone Southend police on 01702 431212.