BERLIN - Police say robbers struck at Berlin's famous KaDeWe department store, smashing display cases and running off with their loot.

Policemen guard an entrance of the luxury Kaufhaus des Westens (KaDeWe) department store after a heist in Berlin, December 20, 2014. According to local media, four masked robbers raided the jewellery section of the store. [Photo/Agencies]

Police spokeswoman Heidi Vogt said the luxury department store on glitzy Kurfuerstendamm avenue was robbed by four men Saturday morning soon after it opened.

Vogt said the robbers fled by car, and it wasn't immediately clear what they had stolen. She said several people were treated for pepper gas sprayed by the bandits.

KaDeWe - an abbreviation for "department store of the west" - is one of the city's top tourist destinations. It's world-famous for its high-end luxury items and its sixth floor grocery department with different bistros selling everything from fresh oysters to Bavarian meat loaf.