A gunman hijacked a private hire car with a teenage passenger in the back as he fled a raid at a city centre jeweller.
The raider who was armed with a handgun smashed into the shop and escaped with a number of Rolex watches thought to be worth around £100,000 after the robbery on a busy Edinburgh shopping street.
A Police Scotland manhunt was launched after officers were called to Laing the jeweller on Frederick Street at around 9:30am.
A spokesman for Police Scotland said a man entered the premises with a handgun and made off with a number of high value items.
No one was injured in the incident but jewellery staff, the private hire car driver and the 19-year-old student were badly shaken by the ordeal.
Police said "anyone who can assist with their ongoing enquiries is asked to come forward".
A spokesman for the shop said in a notice that staff had had a "stressful experience" and the store remained closed for the rest of the day.
The man fled from the scene on foot along Rose Street and into Hanover Street where he entered a private hire car and was driven to the Pilton area of the city.
The student and driver were left in the hijacked car after the raider fled.
He was last seen when he got out of the vehicle in Pilton Drive North at its junction with Royston Mains Crescent.
Officers were also viewing CCTV from cameras in Frederick Street and along the route to the north of the city, as well as conducting enquiries in shops and other businesses in the street.
Detective Sergeant Raymond Gray of Police Scotland said anyone with information should contact police.
He said: "This robbery left the staff badly shaken but thankfully unhurt.
"We are keen to hear from anyone who may have seen the man, or has information about the crime, so that we can trace him as soon as possible.
The notice placed outside Laing's, which has another store in the same street, said: "Following the incident in our store this morning we can thankfully say no one was injured.
"It has been stressful experience for our staff so we have taken the decision to close our store for business for the rest of the day and let the police focus on their investigations.
"Our second store remains open for customers' service or sales enquiries."
He is described as male, white, early 30s, 5ft 10inches, wearing a dark padded hooded jacket, blue trousers, blue and white scarf, and carrying a black and white rucksack.
The incident follows a number of alleged raids on jewellers around Scotland including in Edinburgh and Glasgow, with high value items taken in apparently planned robberies.
A number of people were charged after the alleged theft of around £250,000 of jewellery from one Glasgow shop while £1 million worth of watches and trinkets were said to have been taken during a morning raid at an Edinburgh shop last year.
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