TWO men from Bury - one a former policeman - were today jailed for a total of 28 years after being found guilty of conspiracy to rob at Minshull Street Crown Court.

Former policeman Graham Huckerby, aged 42, from Prestwich, and James Power, aged 60, from Bury, were each given sentences of 14 years following the incident nearly seven years ago.

On Monday, July 3, 1995, the largest cash robbery in Europe at the time took place at the Midlands Bank cheque clearing centre in Salford.

More than £6million was stolen, £4.4million in cash and a further £2.2million in cheques.

At about 8am on the day, a Securicor van, driven by Graham Huckerby arrived at the Midland Bank clearing centre in Ordsall. His colleague then entered the building to complete the paperwork.

Within minutes the van was attacked by three masked men - one man armed with a pistol climbed into the van.

The Securicor van was then driven to Hope Street where the cash was transferred to a white transit van which had previously been stolen in London. This was then driven to Upper Wharf Street, where the cash was moved on again into a white Ford cargo van which has never been traced.

As part of the strategy, Huckerby was left handcuffed to a nearby fence and gagged with sellotape, where he was later discovered by workmen.

Detective Sergeant Allan Donoghue from the Robbery Unit said: "Today's sentencing is due to a great deal of hard work from everyone involved in the case, the officers and the Crown Prosecution Service.

"Although it comes almost seven years after the robbery, it proves our determination to track down and bring people who commit crimes like this to justice.

"Despite this being a well thought out robbery, it didn't all go to plan on the day, we have tracked down those involved and they have been convicted."

The money from the robbery has not yet been found, and a reward of

£250,000 is still outstanding for information leading to its recovery.