A 20-YEAR-OLD man who denied being part of vicious four-man gang which robbed a security van has been convicted by a jury.

Red security dye was found on one £20 note from £820 cash Colin Paul Smith had asked his mother to look after for him.

Smith will now be sentenced on April 9 along with Mark Hope who had previously admitted his part in the robbery last year.

Smith, aged 20, of Glover Street, Leigh, appeared at Bolton Crown Court. He had denied being part of a four-man gang who robbed a security guard of more than £3,000 in cash last year.

The court heard that some of the robbers had been stained by special red security dye emitted from the cash box when it was broken open.

A £20 note, taken from a bundle totalling £820 kept at Smith's mother's house, was also stained by the red dye.

Forensic scientist Andrew Mulley had earlier told then court that he had conducted tests on clothes belonging to Mark Hope, which showed the dye was used in cash boxes.

The same dye was also found on the edge of a £20 note found at the home of Pauline Smith, the mother of Colin Smith, after he had asked her "look after" some cash for him.

The robbery happened outside the Westleigh Housing Association, Westwell Street in Westleigh on August 18 last year.

A security guard was carrying a cashbox from the offices to the van when he was set upon by two men in balaclavas wielding an axe and a hammer. Two other robbers remain at large.