AN ATTEMPT to steal £40 million-worth of gold and a "substantial" amount of money in a raid on a warehouse at Heathrow Airport was foiled by police today.

AN ATTEMPT to steal £40 million-worth of gold and a "substantial" amount of money in a raid on a warehouse at Heathrow Airport was foiled by police today.

Seven men were arrested but one would-be raider was still on the loose after hijacking a van and fleeing, Scotland Yard said.

At about 10am, a gang in a white Transit van rammed through the shutters of the Swissport cargo warehouse on the outskirts of Heathrow.

They jumped out of the van and threatened warehouse staff with at least one gun, knives and other weapons including cudgels.

But more than 100 officers from the Flying Squad and the Metropolitan Police's armed response team were lying in wait, having been tracking the criminals for some time.