£15,000 reward on offer after armed bank robbery

Two men armed with a handgun and a crowbar broke into The Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS), on Main Road, Hathersage, and made off with a significant sum of cash in a holdall yesterday morning.

Detectives have released the above CCTV images of two men they would like to speak to.

The British Bank Association is offering a £15,000 reward for any information leading to the arrest and conviction of the offenders.

The men are thought to have walked down a footpath which runs near to The Croft and entered the bank via the roof at about 6.20am.

Police said staff were “left terrified” after being threatened and a substantial amount of money was stolen.

The men left the bank via the main entrance at 9.05am and made off along Main Road towards Natwest.

The men were described as white, in their early 40s, about 5ft 11in tall and wearing black balaclavas, black stretchy gloves and heavy work type boots.

One of the men was wearing a black hooded top with a pattern on and the other was wearing a grey hooded top with the hoods worn up.

A Derbyshire police spokesman said: “Some of the stolen money was protected by a security device which would have released red dye when activated.

“Therefore we would like the public to contact us if they saw anyone with red dye on them at any point yesterday.

“Also if shop owners or banks have had anyone trying to purchase items with or deposit money stained with red dye they are asked to contact officers.

“Police are appealing for anyone who may have seen anyone acting suspiciously in the area at about 6.20am on Thursday morning to call us on 101 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.”

The bank is currently shut.

A spokesman for RBS said: “We’re working to ensure the branch can reopen as soon as possible. At this time we are focused on security and doing everything we can to support our staff.”

The spokesman said the ATM service will be back first, possibly by Monday, and customers can use NatWest for deposits and withdrawals. RBS in Bakewell is the nearest same brand branch for any other services.

One shocked villager, who did not want to be named, said yesterday: “You don’t expect this type of thing to happen in Hathersage – it’s usually such a quiet place.

“I hope they catch those responsible.”