Armed robbery at Tesco - police appeal

Detectives in Rochdale are appealing for witnesses following a report of an armed robbery outside Tesco supermarket on Silk Street in Castleton on Monday 8 May 2006.

Between 9am and 9.10am a Securicor employee was delivering cash to the store when three men dressed in black tracksuits and wearing black balaclavas approached him. It is believed one of the men was carrying a machete approximately two feet in length.

It is reported that the men threatened the Securicor employee with the machete, pushed him to the floor and punched and kicked him until he gave them the keys to one of the boxes. They then grabbed a box and made off in a silver Ford Mondeo.

The guard and his colleague who was in the van at the time of the attack were both taken to hospital to be treated for shock but neither were seriously injured during the incident.

Almost immediately after the offenders escaped, officers discovered the Mondeo abandoned on Gypsy Lane nearby. It is thought that the offenders then made off in a stolen grey Volvo S60. Both vehicles had false registration plates attached.

Later that night at approximately 10.15pm, the fire service was called to a fire in a wheelie bin on Yates Street in Middleton where they discovered what is thought to be the remnants of the stolen box and thousands of pounds of burning money. Police officers attended and recovered the remainder of the money. The cash had been protected by a security dye, which had been activated when the offenders attempted to open the box by setting it on fire.

The silver Ford Mondeo was carrying a false registration beginning ML52 and had been stolen from an address in the Aigburth area of Liverpool.

The grey Volvo S60, also stolen from Liverpool, was carrying a false registration beginning BL53. It is believed the car was involved in a minor collision with another car on Rochdale Road near Cardinal Langley School in Middleton soon after the robbery between 9.15am and 9.35am on Monday. It was found by officers at about 10.30am in the Cheapside area.

Detectives are appealing to anybody who may have witnessed either of the stolen cars travelling to or from Tesco on the morning of Monday 8 May.

Police would particularly like to appeal to the woman whose car was hit by the Volvo on Rochdale Road to come forward.

Anyone who may have witnessed either of these vehicles or who has any further information about this incident is asked to contact CID at Rochdale on 0161 856 4644 or Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.