AN Iraq war veteran who fought off robbers with an umbrella says he was inspired by a hero granny.

Men armed with sledge hammers tried to smash through the windows of Sangamam Jewellers, in Rayners Lane, as screaming school children watched on.

But one ex-soldier, who asked not to be named, was so inspired by the story of a pensioner who took on jewellery shop robbers in Northampton he wacked one of the pair over the head with the handle of his brolly.

He said: “When they started hammering I was a bit shocked and then I remembered the story of that old lady. I thought if an old lady can grab one of them then maybe I could go for it.

“I didn't have any weapon with me. They had sledge hammers and I had an umbrella but they were really scared when I went after them.

“I managed to scare them off. I hit one of them on the head. I hit him with such force that the umbrella got bent. I think I might have given him a lump on his face.”

The raiders drove up dramatically onto the pavement in a 4x4 Lexus, narrowly missing a pedestrian, by before jumping out and attacking the shop window with hammers, cracking the glass.

It is thought they may have snatched some jewellery through a whole in the pain but before they could smash all the way through, the ex-Royal Engineer, who was part of the Iraq invasion, lead the charge with several bystanders.

The pair clambered back into the vehicle, which sped away.

Sivar Ruban, owner of Ideal Digital Lab, said: “I was shocked – it was the way they drove the car up onto the pavement, how fast they were.

“There were a lot of school children screaming. There were members of the public after them as well. There were two or three guys, one with an umbrella, and they were shouting.

“It's scary for the staff there and it's the third time on the jewellers. People cannot tolerate these things.”

Roy Guinn, owner of the Euronics Centre opposite, said: “I heard a couple of bangs and I saw a guy with an umbrella chase a couple of guys away. He had it up above his head.

“It's a shame there's not more people who do it but then you would end up with more people with a sledge hammer on top of there head.”

Shopkeepers in the area say it is the third time the shop has been raided, once in broad daylight last Saturday afternoon and once in August 2009.