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| Man convicted of £1.7m Lowry raid | Man convicted of £1.7m Lowry raid |
| (30 minutes later) | |
| A man has been convicted of a "terrifying" raid to steal LS Lowry artworks worth £1.7m. | A man has been convicted of a "terrifying" raid to steal LS Lowry artworks worth £1.7m. |
| Art dealer Ivan Aird was tied up by a gang during the raid at his family's home in Cheadle Hulme in 2007. | Art dealer Ivan Aird was tied up by a gang during the raid at his family's home in Cheadle Hulme in 2007. |
| Casey Miller, 23, of Denton, has been convicted of armed robbery after posing as a postman to get into the house. He will be sentenced next month. | Casey Miller, 23, of Denton, has been convicted of armed robbery after posing as a postman to get into the house. He will be sentenced next month. |
| Mr Aird's wife and young daughter were threatened during the raid. The paintings have never been found. | Mr Aird's wife and young daughter were threatened during the raid. The paintings have never been found. |
| There were gasps from jurors at Manchester Crown Court when they were told by the judge, for the first time, that his DNA was found at the scene - but ruled to be inadmissible evidence. | |
| 'Hired muscle' | |
| Judge Andrew Gilbart QC, Recorder of Manchester, warned Miller he faces a "substantial" jail term, before telling the jury: "I only hope these wonderful paintings are discovered to the benefit of everyone." | |
| Manchester Crown Court heard Mr Aird, who knew LS Lowry as a child, specialised in works by the artist. | Manchester Crown Court heard Mr Aird, who knew LS Lowry as a child, specialised in works by the artist. |
| The stolen works include The Viaduct, which is valued in excess of £700,000. | The stolen works include The Viaduct, which is valued in excess of £700,000. |
| The Tanker Entering the Tyne, several pencil sketches and the artist's palette and paintbrushes were also among the haul.The Viaduct was the most valuable of the works taken | |
| Police believe Miller, who told detectives he "didn't know Lowry from Adam", was only the "hired muscle" in the team hired to carry out the "audacious and well planned" raid. | |
| He has 28 previous convictions for serious violence and robbery. | |
| Following the hearing, Mr Aird said he was relieved at the verdict, but still misses his paintings. | |
| "They do mean a lot to me," he said. | |
| "I just like looking at them. My wife watches Coronation Street and all that rubbish, and I look at my pictures. Every time you look at them, you see more and more things in them." | |
| Police are offering a £70,000 reward for further information. | |
| Det Con Chris Barnes, of Greater Manchester Police, said: "The paintings that were stolen that day are so rare and easily recognisable they would be virtually worthless to the people who stole them as they would never be able to sell them to anyone else. | |
| "Although we are pleased that one man has been prosecuted for his role in this, we are still keen to trace the other people involved and still want to find the stolen paintings and return them to their rightful owner." |