Police in Metro Vancouver are trying to hunt down a brazen criminal who's been robbing stores across the region at gunpoint.

The robberies began in March and have mostly targeted grocery stores in Vancouver, Burnaby and West and North Vancouver, with the latest incident on Dec. 1 at a Vancouver Toys "R" Us filled with holiday shoppers.

Vancouver police Det. Joe Danieli says the level of violence in these robberies appears to be escalating and police are concerned about the public's safety.

Police have released photos of the suspect, who's described as white, 60-years-old, 5-10 tall, with a heavy build and short grey hair who drives a late model Ford Explorer.