A reward of up to £3,000 is on offer in a bid to catch a robber who shot a shop assistant twice in the neck.

Crimestoppers today offered the reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person responsible for firing the airgun at the woman several times.

The robber entered Vetry’s convenience store in East Street, Epsom, on Thursday, February 6, at 8.45pm. The shop assistant, who is in her 30s, was shot twice and required hospital treatment.

After the attack her husband, Raj, told the Epsom Guardian "She's got terrible pain. She can’t drink or eat at the moment. She wakes up at night."

Sid Parr, who owns Epsom Lodge B&B across the street, said he felt very sorry for the "nice" young family.

He said: "If it had hit her eye it could have gone straight through to her brain. I’m not so much upset as angry. They are as good as gold."

Police said the robber was a white man of slim to medium build and about 5ft 7in. He wore dark cargo style trousers and a jacket.

Angela Hollinshead, Crimestoppers area manager for Surrey, said: "We urgently need to find the person responsible for this crime as it was an extremely violent robbery.

"The police believe that there were a number of people in the general area at the time of this offence, so we would urge anyone with information to contact us anonymously, safe in the knowledge that their identity will not be revealed."

Anyone with information should call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 or visit at www.crimestoppers-uk.org.