The 'master' of the £14m Hatton Garden heist, Dartford’s Brian Reader, is currently believed to be fighting for his life in hospital.

The 76-year-old has been moved from Belmarsh Prison, in Woolwich, where he was awaiting his sentence with six of his fellow raiders.

The pensioner, part of a gang dubbed the Diamond Wheezers because of their ages, is currently being treated in the intensive care unit (ICU) at Queen Elizabeth Hospital, where he remains in a critical condition.

Reader, of Dartford Road, is being treated for "a number of issues", according to his solicitor Hesham Puri.

Mr Puri said it was "unlikely" his client would be able to attend the sentencing hearing, listed for March 7.

A Prison Service spokesperson said: "An HMP Belmarsh prisoner was taken to hospital on February 24.

"He remains there in order to receive treatment for an ongoing medical condition.

"Appropriate security measures are in place."

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Picture: The Sun / News Syndication

On January 29, the Sun published a picture of Reader leaving King’s College Hospital, in Camberwell, after an appointment.

The paper said that he was seeking treatment for cancer.

It is unknown if this is related to his reported admission to Queen Elizabeth's.

The picture shows him surrounded by police officers with guns as he is wheeled into an ambulance.

Passer-by Tracy Kerr, 41, said at the time: “He looked like any other sick, old man in a wheelchair but was surrounded by police.

“Some had what looked like machine guns.”

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Reader is reported to be suffering from prostate cancer – which is fairly common in men of a certain age.

In the UK, roughly one in eight men will get prostate cancer at some point in their lives. Men aged over 50 are more at risk.

A source at Queen Elizabeth confirmed that a Brian Reader is currently being treated in the ICU, and remains in a critical condition.

A spokesperson at the Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Trust said they could not comment on whether an individual was receiving treatment or not due to patient confidentiality.

John "Kenny" Collins, 75, Daniel Jones, 60, Terry Perkins, 67, Carl Wood, 58, William Lincoln, 60, and Hugh Doyle, 48, are also awaiting sentence for their parts in the biggest burglary in British legal history.