BINGHAM residents were in shock yesterday after brazen thieves used a tractor to pull a cash machine out of the wall of a bank.

The incident happened in the early hours of yesterday morning at the NatWest bank in the town.

Bricks and plaster were strewn across Church Street and a hole was visible at the front of the building.

The cash machine was recovered at a farm building in Kegworth, Leicestershire, yesterday morning. It had been broken into and the cash stolen.

A Land Rover Defender, stolen from Lincolnshire, and a large trailer, stolen from Lowdham, were also abandoned at the farm building.

The tractor was abandoned at the scene in Bingham.

Sergeant Steve Wragg is urging anyone with information to get in touch.

He said: "It appears the offenders stole at least two vehicles in the lead up to this theft, and clearly have no regard for the destruction they left behind."

Police believe the tractor was driven directly to Bingham from Cropwell Butler, from where it was stolen.

It is thought the culprits may have driven the Land Rover and attached trailer through a number of villages between Bingham and Kegworth, including Cotgrave, Wysall, Bunny and East Leake.

The Land Rover Defender was blue and had an open back. The trailer was open-sided and had a caged rear.

Student Ben Easom, 18, of Bingham, was in the Market Place yesterday morning watching police assess the scene.

"Stuff like this never happens in Bingham," he said.

"We get small crime, but never anything like this.

"Whoever did this must have been really brazen to come out at 3am and use a tractor to steal the money.

"People must have heard something. It would have been really loud."

A police cordon remained in place in Bingham Market Place for most of the day while investigators made sure the building was structurally safe.

Emily Cragg, 34, who has lived in Bingham for 21 years, said this was the first time she had heard of a serious crime like this happening in the town.

"I've never seen anything like this here before," she said. "I just can't believe it.

"It's such a brazen thing to do in the middle of the town."

Fellow resident Jo Walker, 43, said Bingham was usually a quiet town. "I'm just shocked," she said. "I suppose its just total amazement that this has happened in a small place like here, especially with a tractor being used."

Anyone with information should contact Nottinghamshire Police on 101 or call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.