The owners of a Napier South dairy are afraid of being targeted again by a group of three men who attempted an aggravated robbery at the store in August.
The store, Te Awa dairy on Ellison St, featured on television show Police Ten 7 on Thursday night in a police bid to find the offenders.
Constable Sarah Wynands said a Mazda Demio pulled up outside the store at 7.50pm, and three suspects, two armed, sprinted in, with the store owner retreating back into the corner of the store.
"One suspect jumped up onto the counter and attempted to access the cigarette cabinet."
Two men were carrying weapons - one was carrying a "quite distinctive" axe with a metal head and handle and Wynands said it was not something a person would pick up at a local hardware store.
The other was carrying a hammer with a coloured handle.
On the day of the robbery, store co-owner Sonu Kaur told Hawke's Bay Today that the incident was "scary" and happening "too often".
"If someone enters your property and threatens you, it is scary. We are going to talk about more security."
Hawke's Bay area response manager Senior Sergeant Neale Saunders said at the time the situation could have been a lot worse for the store.
"Thanks to some quick thinking and access to a fog cannon, property loss and potential injury has been avoided," Saunders said.
He said there were 30 fog cannons installed at commercial premises throughout the Eastern District.
"Fog cannon technology is an excellent resource that's been proven time and time again to prevent theft."
The suspects left the store and left in the same Mazda Demio.
Wynands said the store had "really good" footage of the attempted robbery which they were now releasing.
The dark blue Mazda Demio was stolen from Scully Cres between 6.30pm and 7.50pm (the time of the robbery).
The vehicle was located and recovered at 9.30pm on the same night, on Mason Ave.
Police are keen to hear from anyone who saw the Mazda Demio and the occupants.
The same dairy has been targeted by robbers several times over the years, most famously in August 2016 when the owner Manmohan Singh and son Sukhjinder Pal grabbed a hockey stick and a table leg to ward off two robbers armed with a claw hammer and a crowbar.
On that occasion, a fight behind the counter and the disarming of the man wielding the crowbar were captured on CCTV images which were later widely viewed on social media.
"Before, you had no limitations ... and all of a sudden there’s a handbrake on."