A 53-year-old man has appeared in court on charges relating to building society raids.

Christopher Frank Wood, a self-employed office cleaner of no fixed abode, was remanded into police custody for three days by magistrates in Tamworth, Staffordshire.

Wood is charged with four firearms offences, one of attempted robbery and one of robbery.

Wood was arrested on Monday by detectives investigating a string of 34 raids on building societies throughout the north and midlands including a robbery at the Alliance and Leicester Building Society - in North Street, Keighley - in December 1995, when an undisclosed sum was stolen.

There was no application for bail and reporting restrictions were not lifted.

Wood will reappear before magistrates in Burton-on-Trent tomorrow.

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