Thieves dug a 50ft tunnel under a building to steal thousands of pounds
from a cash machine.
Police believe the gang spent months digging the 'complex' structure
from nearby wasteland to get at the cash at a Tesco store in Eccles,
Greater Manchester last Friday, March 14.
The elaborate heist has been linked to the so-called 'mole-in-the-wall'
gang, who are believed to have carried out three similar plots in the city
since 2007.
In the latest raid, thieves stole cash boxes containing a 'substantial' sum of money from the Tesco store in Liverpool Road before disappearing back through the tunnel with the cash, Greater Manchester Police (GMP) said.
A police spokesman confirmed that the amount taken was in the 'tens of
thousands of pounds'.
Officers said they believe the gang may have spent months digging the
tunnel, because of the amount of planning that was involved and complex nature
of the tunnel structure.
GMP's Detective Superintendent Mark Toker said: 'These people had obviously spent a long time plotting this crime and I doubt they would have been able to keep their plans secret for all that time, without telling others about their elaborate scheme.
'The offenders must have spent long periods of time in the area over the
last few months, which people may have noticed.
'You may have seen people acting suspiciously on Friday night, possibly covered in soil.
'I would ask anyone with any information about the robbery to call us as
soon as possible.'
It is thought to be the fourth time in seven years the same 'tunnel'
method has been used in an attempt to steal cash machines from across the
Greater Manchester area.
In August 2007, thieves dug under a Blockbusters store at Fallowfield
shopping precinct in Manchester in a bid to steal an ATM, only to be foiled
when contractors stumbled upon their tunnel while laying electric cables.
As well as scaffolding and
wooden poles to shore up that tunnel, and electric lighting to dig by, police
found tools, shovels, a wheelbarr
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