Dozens of shoppers watched on in horror as a group of robbers smashed their way into display cases in a jewellery store display at a shopping centre in Hamilton.

The group of about eight men took part in the dramatic daylight robbery at Michael Hill at Te Awa, The Base shortly after 11am on Sunday, jumping on counters and breaking into display cabinets with hammers and at least one axe.

The robbery followed an earlier, similar incident at the Chartwell Shopping Centre earlier in the day, in which a security guard was bashed.

Te Awa shopping centre, Hamilton. Photo: Mark Taylor/Stuff.

A bystander, who asked not to be named, happened to be nearby in Te Awa at the time of the second robbery and captured dramatic video of it as it was happening.

He and his children aged 13, 12, 9 and 3 were making their way to the downstairs car park when he spotted the group heading their way.

'And first I thought it was a bunch of kids, but then I realised they were adults and I just thought ‘Nah'. These guys had hoods on and masks up, and they were running with hammers.

They went straight to Michael Hill. They knew exactly what they were doing,” said the witness.

'There were about eight of them. I'd say they were all aged in their mid to late 20s ... one guy did not have a mask on, he just had a cap.”

Holding his youngest child in one arm, the witness whipped out his phone and began filming.

'My kids were all freaking out. Fortunately someone from North Beach took them inside and they closed the doors.

'The staff who were in Michael Hill were also freaked out. They just went straight out the back. [the robbers] would only have been there a minute.”

Within 60 seconds the group had grabbed handfuls of jewels and were running off to where a getaway car was parked at the rear of the shopping complex. A group of about a dozen shoppers and store staff chased after them – the witness included.

The presence of other nearby children had incensed him.

I just thought ‘f... you' and chased after them.

One of the robbers who was slow to flee fell as he reached him 'and he flew into some bollards.”

'I thought about restraining him, but I let him go after he called out to others in the group for assistance.

'You can't gauge what these guys will do to you. You can grab one, but it only takes one hit with a hammer and it's game over. Bastards.

'Five or so of them jumped into the one car. The others must have run to another car somewhere ... I was opening the car doors and trying to stop them from getting away by getting the keys. Other people were throwing rocks at the windows.”

One of the masked robbers holds an axe as he flees from the scene of the robbery through the Te Awa shopping centre. Photo: Supplied.

Being mindful his own children were still inside the mall, the witness said he stepped back.

'He had to do a three-point turn to get out of there. I could have stepped in front of the car, but he would have just run me over.”

Acting Inspector Michael Henwood said the police were following 'strong lines” of inquiry, including viewing CCTV footage to establish the damage caused and what was taken.

'The community can be assured our staff are working hard to identify the offenders and hold them to account.

'We acknowledge this type of offending causes concern and harm in our community and it will not be tolerated.”

Anyone with information was asked to contact Police by calling 105, quoting job number 220925/6221. Information can also be provided anonymously via Crime Stoppers on 0800 555 111.

Members of possibly the same group were involved at a similar robbery at the Chartwell Shopping Centre earlier in the day, during which a security guard was assaulted.

'At around 5.45am, a group of offenders arrived in a vehicle outside the complex on Hukanui Road,” Detective Senior Sergeant Kristine Clarke said.

'It's understood the group have smashed their way into the premises, entering multiple stores and taking numerous items.

'A security guard was parked in a vehicle nearby at the time.The group have approached the vehicle and assaulted the security guard before leaving the scene.”

The guard was taken to hospital to get treatment for facial injuries.

'This is a really nasty, gratuitous violence directed at the security guard who had not approached or challenged the offenders.

'We believe the offenders were travelling in a gold, 2005 Nissan Tiida. If you area able to help us identify this vehicle, or have any information which could assist us in identifying those responsible, please get in touch with police as soon as possible.”

The Te Awa incident has already been seized on by politicians eager to make political capital.

ACT leader David Seymour rushed out a press statement in which he decried the robbery as the result of the Labour Party's justice policies.

'Criminals are escalating their attacks on innocent people and Labour's silence is deafening. It's hard to imagine how terrifying it must have been for the shopkeepers in Hamilton today, and people who were out shopping.

'The Prime Minister's made much of her time in New York, but charity begins at home. How can the Prime Minister get tough on dictators with nuclear weapons when she can't even stop thugs with hammers knocking over jewellery stores?”

Mike Mather/Stuff