A Nottinghamshire burglary gang deliberately targeted well-to-do homes to steal high-value vehicles which they sold on for profit or used in further break-ins. Nottingham Crown Court heard how the nine-strong group used what a prosecutor called a “snap lock” technique to gain entry to properties, most while occupants were asleep in bed.
Once inside they found the keys to makes such as BMW, Mercedes, Audi and other cars which in total were worth an estimated £300,000. And after stealing one vehicle, one of the gang was filmed driving to which someone sent him a message saying: “Are you thick or what, putting it on Instagram? If you do the crime you do the time.”
Gareth Gimson, prosecuting the two-day sentencing hearing, said: “In almost all of the burglaries, whether entry was gained or attempted, the method was almost identical. The method was to attack addresses with UPVC doors with protruding door handles which were attacked using tools and entry gained.
“These were almost all addresses with driveways and high value vehicles stolen. There were 15 burglaries, seven attempted burglaries and two thefts. The total value of the vehicles was some £300,000.”
Mr Gimson said the conspiracy ran between 2020 and 2021 and spawned two dedicated Nottinghamshire Police investigations called Operation Terrestrial and Operation Pavlolva. He said the group’s offending began in Nuneaton, Warwickshire, before heading more locally and taking in targeted addresses including in Mapperley, Woodthorpe, Bingham, Radcliffe-on-Trent, Ruddington, Ilkeston and Mansfield.
The prosecutor detailed each of them to court. Mr Gimson said the first burglary happened at a five-bedroomed house “in the dead of night” in Wadebridge Drive, Nuneaton, when the family of four, including a heavily-pregnant woman, were asleep upstairs and a £12,000 Audi and other belongings were taken. He said: “On the day she gave birth, there was no family car to take her home from the hospital.”
The prosecutor said there were then burglaries, attempted burglaries or thefts of cars in streets including Clumber Drive, Radcliffe; Ebenezer Street, Ilkeston; Wood View, Cotgrave and Wychwood Road, Bingham. Mr Gimson said in one night on November 26, 2020, addresses in Covert Crescent and Cliff Way, Radcliffe, as well as an address in Brookside Road, Ruddington, were targeted with a Mercedes and a Peugeot stolen and the next burglary saw a silver BMW taken as the homeowner “was woken by the sound of an engine revving and watched as his car was driven off”. He said the next break-in was at Highcroft, Mapperley, where a £25,000 Mercedes e-class was taken and driven to Barnsley and the householder’s dog was locked outside.
He said on December 10 a BMW and Skoda Fabia were stolen during a break-in at a house in Mansfield Woodhouse as well as jewellery. Mr Gimson said: “(Defendant) Cory Russell was filmed driving off and he received a message on his phone saying ‘are you thick or what putting it on Instagram? If you do the crime you do the time’.”
Mr Gimson said the next break-in was at a house in Peacock Close, Ruddington, where a BMW 320i and an Audi A3 were stolen. He said the cars were spotted by a patrol car in the village and a police chase began where speeds of 100mph were reached before the Audi was abandoned in Beechdale Road, Aspley. Other break-ins happened in Newthorpe and Eastwood.
The defendants have pleaded guilty to charges including conspiracy to commit burglary, attempted burglary and theft.
They are Cameron Mickle, 27, of Hoe View Road, Cropwell Bishop. Lauren Fisher, his barrister, said her client was only involved in one of the burglaries and has been waiting for more than four years to find out his fate since he was arrested in December 2020.
Jamie Bentley, 34, of HMP Nottingham.
Declan Russell, 25, of HMP Five Wells.
Aynsley Rayner, 31, of Hoe View Road, Cropwell Bishop, who has only pleaded guilty to assisting an offender. She is the mother of Mickle’s three children aged five, six and eight, although they are no longer living together, Miss Fisher said.
Cory Heald, 21, of Oxclose Lane, Arnold. David Outterside, his barrister, said: “He was 17 at the time and throughout this conspiracy. He has (now) stopped the cannabis and has shown significant improvements.”
Jordan Chaplin, 23, of Nottingham Road, Nottingham.
Dylan Stone, 22, of Manor Road, Eastwood.
Reece Stephens, 23, of Norwell Place, Top Valley.
Benjamin Wild, 25, of HMP Five Wells, who also faces sentence for charges of being concerned in the supply of cocaine and cannabis, possession of cocaine and cannabis and possession of criminal property which post-date the burglary conspiracy and are from a warrant executed at his home address at 7.55am on December 29, 2022. Fergus Malone, mitigating, said his client was just 20 at the time the conspiracy began and his involvement was only in some of the break-ins and attempted burglaries. He said: “Back in 2020 there was not a substantial amount of maturity, there is now a level of maturity which was not there before.”
All of the gang are expected to be sentenced on Friday, January 17.