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| Tunnel gang targets cash machine | Tunnel gang targets cash machine |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| An audacious plot to break into a cash machine was foiled after workmen found a 12m (40ft) tunnel heading towards it. | An audacious plot to break into a cash machine was foiled after workmen found a 12m (40ft) tunnel heading towards it. |
| Workers at a building site close to Fallowfield Retail Park, Manchester, uncovered the tunnel dug out from a nearby railway embankment. | Workers at a building site close to Fallowfield Retail Park, Manchester, uncovered the tunnel dug out from a nearby railway embankment. |
| The shaft, just 5m (16ft) short of its target, had electric lighting and scaffolding support. | The shaft, just 5m (16ft) short of its target, had electric lighting and scaffolding support. |
| Greater Manchester Police said they were treating the discovery of the tunnel as attempted burglary. | Greater Manchester Police said they were treating the discovery of the tunnel as attempted burglary. |
| Workers were digging into the ground near the retail park to lay electric cables when they breached the top of the tunnel. | Workers were digging into the ground near the retail park to lay electric cables when they breached the top of the tunnel. |
| The 1.5m (5ft) high passage, supported with scaffold poles and boards, is now expected to be filled with concrete. | The 1.5m (5ft) high passage, supported with scaffold poles and boards, is now expected to be filled with concrete. |
| It's very well constructed, a semi-professional job with lighting, a fresh air supply and very well shored and lined out Mick Duffy, building site worker class="" href="#graphic">See the tunnel's location | |
| Police sealed off the area near the Blockbuster store to examine the site on Birchfields Road, Fallowfield, after being alerted on Thursday morning. | Police sealed off the area near the Blockbuster store to examine the site on Birchfields Road, Fallowfield, after being alerted on Thursday morning. |
| The entrance of the tunnel was found at the embankment of the railway line which runs behind the retail park. | The entrance of the tunnel was found at the embankment of the railway line which runs behind the retail park. |
| A wooden trap door, covered with soil, hid the entrance to the passage, which was only accessible with a ladder. | A wooden trap door, covered with soil, hid the entrance to the passage, which was only accessible with a ladder. |
| Inside, builders found a wheelbarrow and shovels the would-be thieves used for digging and moving earth. | Inside, builders found a wheelbarrow and shovels the would-be thieves used for digging and moving earth. |
| Mick Duffy, from Stainforth Construction, told the BBC that his fellow workers puzzled over the discovery before realising what it was. | |
| "At that stage we've notified the police because it is looking very strange and it would appear somebody was tunneling from outside the site boundary towards the cash machine. | |
| "It's very well constructed, a semi-professional job with lighting, a fresh air supply and very well shored and lined out." | |
| The railway line behind the shops is a busy route which supports frequent trains between Manchester Piccadilly and the airport. | The railway line behind the shops is a busy route which supports frequent trains between Manchester Piccadilly and the airport. |
| It is believed the thieves were planning to dig a hole under the machine and then move it away through the tunnel. | It is believed the thieves were planning to dig a hole under the machine and then move it away through the tunnel. |
| It is not known how long the gang had been digging - or what they did with all the soil. | |