Hooded thieves made off with more than £2,000, after gaining entry to a safe and stealing a cash drawer from a hotel.

The drawer, which was later found discarded in undergrowth close to the premises, contained around £600.

The remainder of the cash, belonging to Skyline Hotel, Chelmsford Road, Great Dunmow, was taken from a petty cash box and safe.

CCTV footage shows two men in the reception area of the hotel between 3am on June 17 and 9.45am on June 18.

Although both were wearing hooded tops with the hoods covering their heads, one man looks straight at one of the cameras, capturing a clear image of his face.

The men walked into the hotel via the front doors, which are left insecure for guests. Once inside they went into the bar and restaurant area, causing £430 of damage by forcing the internal doors.

The thieves, who got away with £2,020, also removed a whole safe which was screwed inside a file cabinet, as well as a computer hard drive and a master key to all the areas.

Investigating officer, PC Bloomfield, of Saffron Walden police station said: “The CCTV footage of one of the suspects is extremely good. I am hoping somebody will recognise him and identify him to police.”

Anybody with any information should call PC Bloomfield at Saffron Walden police station on 101.