Police tell of wife's ordeal as CCTV footage reveals bank heist details
New CCTV footage from inside the Northern's Belfast cash distribution centre, released yesterday, showed a bank employee, whose family was held hostage, leaving with a sports bag filled with nearly £1.5 million cash which he was told to hand over to one of the raiders.
Detectives also revealed 1,000 lines of inquiry are being examined, some with the aid of international experts.
A detective heading the inquiry into the £26.5m heist told how Karen McMullan, the wife of assistant manager Kevin McMullan, stumbled disoriented onto a country road in pitch darkness, after being held for at least 23 hours as part of the robbery plan.
Superintendent Andy Sproule said: "She was dropped out in the middle of nowhere. Her car was burnt a short distance away from her.
"A car was driving along the road as she made her way out onto the road and almost hit her."
Mrs McMullan had been seized a day before the December 20 raid from her home in Loughinisland, Co Down.
"They forced her to remove her outer clothing and gave her a boiler suit to wear," the detective said.
Mrs McMullan's husband and Chris Ward were warned their families would be killed if they did not follow strict orders to empty the vaults.
Trolleys were loaded with boxes of cash and hidden under rubbish before being smuggled out of the bank into a waiting white transit van that has still not been traced.
In the new footage, Mr Ward is seen leaving a staff entrance with an Umbro bag. He took the bag of money to a bus stop where he handed it over to another man. Detectives urged any witnesses to contact them.
The men who earlier took Mr Ward from his home in the Poleglass area of the city spoke with Belfast accents, police have confirmed.
Chief Constable Hugh Orde, who has publicly blamed the IRA for one of the world's biggest ever robberies, will be questioned today by members of the Northern Ireland Policing Board.
Given the huge stakes involved, Supt Sproule insisted no rash arrests would be made. But he gave an insight into the massive operation involving up to 45 Police Service of Northern Ireland detectives, as well as international experts.
He said: "We have maybe 1,000 lines of inquiry, we have interviewed hundreds of people and many, many hours have been spent viewing all aspects of the inquiry.
"It's a very high-profile investigation, there's a lot of international interest in this investigation, but it would be foolhardy to rush into arrests without the evidence being there."
: A gang of up to 20 raiders rob £26.5 million from the Northern Bank in Belfast.
: While the PSNI initially says that up to five organisations could have responsible, it quickly begins conducting raids on homes of prominent Republicans in North and West Belfast.
: Huge Orde publicly names the IRA as the prime suspects, leading to widespread condemnation of Sinn Féin by all other Northern parties and by the British and Irish governments.
: Taoiseach Bertie Ahern says it was an IRA job and that Sinn Féin leaders may have had prior knowledge of robbery while involved in the failed negotiations to restore devolution.
: Sinn Féin's Martin McGuinness says the governments will be on dangerous ground, if they discriminate against SF arising from the heist.
: IRA issue second statement denying involvement. It is signed P O'Neill denoting official sanction.
: Meeting between Ahern and Adams confirmed for next Tuesday. Adams accuses Taoiseach of causing profound damage to the political process. Michael McDowell says P O'Neill statement cuts no ice.
