Two robbers whose get-away was foiled by have-a-go heroes have been jailed for 12 years each.

Paul Hughes, 31, and Sean McNeil, 24, were found guilty after a trial of the £20,000 raid of the Poynton branch of the Royal Bank of Scotland.

A jury at Chester Crown Court heard that three men fled the bank with £20,000 cash but were prevented from getting in the stolen getaway car by staff from the nearby Appayon Indian Restaurant.

CCTV footage played to the jury showed a group of seven staff armed with mop handles and confronting people emerging from the rear of the bank.

In a statement read out in court, chef Abdul Nur said: “Our boss ran into the kitchen and said ‘the bank is being robbed’, so we all ran out into the back. I grabbed a mop handle.

“We thought they had gone. At that precise moment three males burst outside from the bank carrying a large amount of money and what looked like tills.

“They paused, then ran right towards us. I started hitting one male. He dropped the money and tried to fight. I hit several times. We stopped them running to the car and they ran off leaving behind a lot of money.”

In another statement read to the jury, Abdul Hai, a waiter, said: “I kicked out at one, hitting him in the back. Others used mop sticks. One of them hit one of the males so hard the stick broke.” In statements read out at the hearing, the court heard that on April 29, just before 5pm bank manager Catherine Dalton was cashing up with Alison Newsome, Dawn Davenport and Nicole McManus when three men smashed their way into the rear of the bank and succeeded in forcing them to hand over £20,000.

Ms Dalton said: “One of the males, who appeared in charge, demanded access to the cash machine and safes. There was lots of shouting.” Ms Newsome said: “Throughout the whole incident I was petrified. They were aggressive and threatening.”

Ms Davenport managed to get out of the bank and fled to the restaurant for help ‘absolutely terrified’, the court heard. Ms McManus said the experience had left her ‘angry, violated and upset’.

The court heard that after being chased off by the restaurant staff, the raiders fled to Oak Grove and car-jacked Peter Bailo, who was sat in his Renault van. In his statement, Mr Bailo told the hearing that one of them was holding a metal bar and the other was holding a Stanley Knife.

Mr Bailo said: “One of them said “f*****g get out or I’ll f******g kill you”.

The court heard that Hughes and McNeil then fled on foot to Oak Grove and car-jacked Peter Bailo, who was sat in his Renault van, and crashed it into a parked Mini Countryman which had two children inside.

RBS Bank in Poynton was targeted by the duo

The stolen van was later found dumped near the Deanwater Hotel in Woodford and both men were arrested in a taxi en route to the Trafford Centre.

Hughes, 31, of no fixed abode, and McNeil, of Allerton Road, Liverpool, were both found guilty of two charges of robbery.

Speaking after the sentence, Detective Inspector Claire Jesson, from Macclesfield Police, praised the efforts of the restaurant staff and detectives.

She said: “I am extremely grateful to the witnesses in this case, including members of the public who either tried to prevent the robbers from leaving the bank or who noted and reported key details to us which assisted greatly in catching the men.

“This was a complex investigation which has required a considerable amount of detective hours and the officers involved, Detective Constable Stephen Joyce and Detective Constable Andrew Cole, have worked tirelessly to ensure these offenders are brought to justice.”

“I am delighted with the court result and the sentencing of these men for a serious offence for which they rightly deserve a substantial custodial sentence.

“I hope this provides a strong message to those criminals who travel into our force area to commit crime, that the police response to such incidents and the subsequent investigation will always be of a high standard, meaning we will catch them and they will be brought to justice.

A third robber involved in the raid was never caught but Det Insp Jesson said police are determined to arrest him.