'FAST' Eddie Maher today pleaded guilty to stealing £1,172,500 from a Securicor van in Felixstowe 20 years ago.

Eastern Daily Press: Deborah Brett (right), partner of Eddie Maher, arrives at Southwark Crown Court in London where Maher admitted the theft of a security van containing £1.2million in 1993. Picture: Sean Dempsey/PA WireDeborah Brett (right), partner of Eddie Maher, arrives at Southwark Crown Court in London where Maher admitted the theft of a security van containing £1.2million in 1993. Picture: Sean Dempsey/PA Wire

The 57-year-old former security guard had denied the charge in September when he appeared before Ipswich Crown Court.

However, he was brought before Southwark Crown Court this morning from Belmarsh Prison and changed his plea to guilty.

Maher had duped his way on to the January 22, 1993 Securicor run to banks and post offices in the Felixstowe area by feigning a doctor's appointment.

The then 37-year-old told his bosses he needed leave work early to get to the appointment.

Maher, who lived in South Woodham Ferrers, near Chelmsford, and a colleague made their first delivery of the day to Lloyds Bank in Hamilton Road, Felixstowe, at around 9.30am.

While his co-worker was inside the bank, Maher - who had worked for the security company for only six months - drove off.

The armoured van was subsequently found abandoned in Micklegate Road, Felixstowe.

A total of £1,172,500 had been stolen, although £2,100 in coins were left inside.

The money was loaded into a Toyota Previa stolen in east London in November 1992, before the vehicle was dumped at a viewing area opposite Landguard Fort.

Maher's epaulettes were found nearby.

His Opel was later discovered burned out at Mead Gate Road, Nazeing, near Harlow, four days later.

Maher's life on the run was ended in February last year when he was arrested by the authorities in Ozark, Missouri.

His capture came after a tip-off from his estranged daughter-in-law, with whom he was feuding after she discovered his secret past.

While a fugitive Maher lived under the names of Stephen King and his elder brother Michael Maher.

Despite stealing nearly £1.2m he was declared bankrupt in 2010 and is believed to have lost all his money in the late 1990s after investing in a stock market-linked retirement fund.