I WAS interested to learn of an intelligence led-police operation in Ewood, Blackburn, targeting manual worker type vehicles, between Tuesday and Saturday of the week before last.

Using the latest Automatic Number Plate Recognition technology, which can read hundreds of registration plates every hour and check them against police databases for tax and insurance, police stopped 251 vehicles, 158 people were checked, 13 vehicles clamped and four arrests were made for motoring offences.

Meanwhile across the town in broad daylight on the Friday afternoon, a four-strong, balaclava-clad machete-wielding vicious gang drove through the streets of Blackburn in a stolen champagne coloured, convertible Audi to the Nat West bank on Copy Nook and terrorised staff and customers by throwing a metal beer keg through the window, making threats and waving swords about. No money was obtained but the would-be robbers' stolen getaway car was found abandoned in a back alley, behind Walter Street where the criminals switched to another vehicle.

Police are appealing for witnesses.

DAVID FORTUNE, Queen's Road, Blackburn.