THREE men have been jailed for more than 25 years following an armed robbery in Atherton.

Dean Brown, aged 25, of no fixed abode, Leyton Dewitt, aged 23, of no fixed abode and William Garry, aged 34, of Chaucer Grove, Atherton, pleaded guilty to robbery, burglary and aggravated vehicle taking at an earlier hearing.

Today, Brown was jailed for eight years six months, Dewitt for eight years four months and Garry to eight years four months.

At 3.20pm on June 9, 2015, money was being picked up by a security worker outside the Natwest bank on Market Street when a silver Mazda parked up behind her van.

Dewitt and Garry were wearing balaclavas and got out of the car.

Dewitt was holding a screwdriver and Garry was carrying a hammer. They took bags of money containing a large amount of cash before they drove off at speed and the police spotted the car and gave chase.

The Mazda collided with another car before they men off but were later detained by officers after a brief foot chase.

Detective Sergeant Paul Rollinson said: “They did not care what affect their actions had on their victim, who was left terrified by her ordeal. Thankfully, as soon as we received the call, the description of the car was radioed through to officers who recognised it. They then made swift arrests and the trio are now paying for their crime.”