THIS was the moment that marked the road to ruin for former Darlington Football Club chairman George Reynolds.

It was 2pm on Monday, June 14, last year, when police swooped on a blue Mercedes car as it travelled through High Etherley, near Bishop Auckland, County Durham.

Reynolds, his personal assistant, Ian Robinson, and former club director Richard Tennick were inside.

Several policemen were involved in the operation and they recovered the hundreds of thousands of pounds pictured above from the car.

All three men were arrested by an officer from the Regional Assets Recovery Team, based at police headquarters in Durham, and questioned at Bishop Auckland police station.

But 24 hours after the swoop, which was exclusively reported in The Northern Echo, Reynolds bragged to us: "Watch me prove I'm whiter than white."

He vowed to clear his name by announcing: "They can do what they like. They know and I know I am whiter than white."

Reynolds described how he had gone to the bank and withdrawn £500,000 from his account.

He said: "The money is mine and I am perfectly entitled to take it out if I wish.

"The police described it as a large amount, but for someone like me who is used to dealing in millions, it is small."

Reynolds added: "It seems that you run the risk of being accused of money laundering if you choose to withdraw large amounts of money from your account."

Five months later, Reynolds was charged with money laundering, once more exclusively reported by the Echo on November 11, last year.

Today, he could face a prison sentence after admitting cheating the taxman out of more than half a million pounds.