A hooded man wearing sunglasses threatened two teenagers at knifepoint and asked them to hand over their wallets.

The 18-year-old victims were outside one of their homes in Newborough Street, behind Kit Kat Crescent, when the incident happened at about 7.30pm on Wednesday.

A spokesman for North Yorkshire Police said the two teenagers were returning from a nearby shop. He said: “They were approached by an offender who threatened them with a kitchen knife and demanded their wallets.”

He said they escaped uninjured by going into a house, before the would-be robber rode off on a bicycle in the direction of the football ground. He is described as a white male, aged 18 to 19, 6ft tall, of thin build, wearing sunglasses and a blue coat with a hood pulled tightly across his face. Anybody with information about the incident should phone North Yorkshire Police on 0845 6060247.