alleged yesterday.

For a 24-year-old Bank of Butterfield employee is one of three men arrested in connection with an armed raid on one of the bank's security vans on Friday morning.

Two 20-year-old men, one from Pembroke and the other from Devonshire, have also been arrested.

The man leading the inquiry into the incident, Detective Inspector LeGay Farley, said: "We can confirm there was some assistance given by a Bank of Butterfield employee.'' Det. Insp. Farley added that most of the money stolen in the robbery had been recovered -- although he declined to confirm the amount stolen.

He said: "We are still actively exploring certain lines of inquiry and we would prefer not to announce how much was taken.'' A handgun, which was not loaded, and is believed to have been used during the robbery, has also been recovered.

Two raiders struck as the security van pulled into the Mermaid Club on Warwick's South Shore Road on Friday morning.

The two men pushed one of the two-strong crew to the rear of the van and forced him to open the van and hand over bags of notes for filling up ATMs.

The raiders then fled the scene on separate motorcycles. The security guard and the female bank employee travelling in the van were unhurt.

Last night, Bank of Butterfield executive vice-president Mr. Colin L. Furr declined to comment on the news as the bank was closed for the holiday Monday.

But he added: "Once we have had a chance to look at this, we will issue a statement.'' It was the second armed raid on the Island in less than a week. On the Sunday before the Mermaid Club robbery, a lone masked gunman struck at the Kentucky Fried Chicken in Queen Street.

Det. Insp. Farley said the two raids were not being linked, but he added the Mermaid Club incident may have been a "copycat'' raid.

And he said: "This type of offence is of great concern to us and we are doing our best to keep a lid on this kind of thing. We believe we are making progress in this direction.'' Det. Insp. Farley added that information from the public and two uniformed Police officers who remembered seeing two men acting suspiciously in the area of the Mermaid Club was of invaluable assistance to the Police inquiry.

He said: "If members of the public continue to respond to Police appeals as they have done in this case, we would be able to solve a lot more crime on this Island.'' Det. Insp. Farley said that inquiries into the KFC raid were continuing and several leads were being followed up.

He added: "A number of people have been interviewed -- I don't want to comment any further, but I believe the Police will be successful in that investigation in due course.'' Three men are expected to appear in court today in connection with an alleged incident on South Shore Road on Friday.