TRADERS and residents of Newbridge are 'relieved and pleased' that CCTV cameras are to be installed in the town, after it was rocked by an armed bank robbery and shooting.

Shop owners and residents were stunned by the terrifying incident last year, during which teenage gunman Gemalettin Ortancil was shot down in the High Street by armed police.

Ortancil, 19, had travelled from his home in London to carry out the badly thought-out crime at the HSBC bank in Newbridge - in the mistaken belief that the police forces in South Wales would be a 'soft touch'.

He originally decided to target a bank in Blaina - but returned to target Newbridge after finding it shut. Ortancil then terrorised staff and customers at the Newbridge bank before escaping into the street, only to be tracked down by local police.

He was eventually caught after being shot in the shoulder by an armed response unit. He was subsequently sentenced to eleven years youth custody.

Now, it has been anounced that Newbridge will be helped in the fight against crime by eight new CCTV cameras - for Caerphilly council has been successful in its Stage Two bid for Home Office funding of £131,510.

The cameras will be installed along the length of the High Street and will provide coverage of the whole shopping centre, 24 hours a day.

Keith Lilley, who owns the jewellers shop opposite the HSBC bank, said: 'This would be brilliant, although I will believe it when it happens. We have been asking for this for years.

'I am sure the cameras will be a deterrent, but it could also just cause more problems somewhere else.' Lyndon Chesterman, owner of Pets Corner, said: 'I am very pleased about this. We definitely need them here. I dont think they would have prevented the armed robbery, but they are a deterrent.'

And Katherin Davies, partner at Sweet Briar florist, said that local shops experienced problems with gangs of teenagers, and added that her daughter's handbag had recently been stolen from the shop. 'I would be very pleased if we had CCTV here,' she said.

Newbridge councillors Lyn Ackerman, Kath Baker and Aldor Morris added that they had campaigned and lobbied hard to make the cameras a reality.

'Since the recent armed robbery attempt in the town, people's perceptions and desire for CCTV has increased dramatically and we more than welcome this excellent news,' they said.

Islwyn MP Don Touhig also said the cameras may deter any such incidents happening in the future. There is evidence that CCTV does curb anti-social behaviour, and this bid will certainly reassure both traders and shoppers in Newbridge,' he said.