A MASKED armed raider escaped with a haul of cash after he threatened a Westhoughton postmaster last night. The man burst into the Hindley Road Post Office, Hindley Road, and threatened to shoot the postmaster, aged 41. He thrust a brown paper bag over the counter and ordered the postmaster to fill it with cash. The raider then snatched the bag and ran out of the post office. He is white, 5ft 8ins to 5ft 9ins tall, and was wearing a dark blue ski mask, blue bomber jacket and beige chino-style trousers. He had a Liverpool accent.

Anyone with information about the raid at 5.25pm should call Astley Bridge CID on 0161 872 5050 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

A Royal Mail employee was ambushed by masked men during an armed raid on a post van office yesterday afternoon. The two men, one armed with a gun, approached the worker on Ringley Road West, Radcliffe, and demanded he hand over two bags containing a substantial amount of cash.

They escaped in a waiting vehicle, which was driven by a third man. The first is described as half-cast, 5ft 7ins tall, medium build, and was wearing a short black jacket and a ski mask. The second was 5ft 10ins and had dark clothing and a ski mask. Anyone with any information is asked to call Bury Police on 0161 856 8157.

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