Van gang used specialist key to steal £100k of vehicles
THIEVES HIT BUSINESSES BY TAKING COMMERCIAL EQUIPMENT
A VAN theft gang used insider knowledge to help themselves to 18 vehicles in a professionally organised plot which left small and medium businesses in the lurch.
Head honcho Tony Curtis used a specialist key which he knew about from his business maintaining and repairing Transit vans, to gain access to and start up the stolen vehicles.
Ford vans, cars and contents worth more than £100,000 were snatched from small businesses in the North East and North West in a three-month crime spree by the hivis jacket wearing thieves.
Hard-working men often lost tools and equipment too and suffered huge inconvenience to their businesses as a result of the thefts, some of which were stolen to order.
Now Curtis and co-conspirators David Carter, Jordan Russell and Liam Williams have all been jailed at Newcastle Crown Court.
Prosecutor Christopher Knox said: “These were deliberate, calculated offences involving the planned theft of vehicles, almost all of them Ford vehicles, mostly Transit-related vehicles.
“All of those vehicles involved were for commercial use for small and medium-sized businesses, often taken from outside the owner’s homes and often containing quite large amounts of equipment and property for the businesses.
“In almost all cases the work for which these vans were used was disrupted, no doubt at great financial cost.”
The court heard the value of vehicles which were not recovered was £68,000 but the true losses would have been more than £100,000.
Mr Knox added: “The prosecution say these were professional offences in the sense there was a clear motive for obtaining them with a view to stealing and dispensing of them.”
Curtis had businesses in North Shields and Blyth for maintaining and repairing and dealing with Transit vans.
Mr Knox told the court: “The thefts required specialist equipment. In most cases they were stolen using a tibbe key which makes it possible to get into the vehicles.
“These should not be used by vehicle thieves, they are something in the trade. Curtis had more than a foot in the trade.
“They made it possible for vehicles Jordan Russell
to be entered and started without undue disturbance.”
The court heard the North East offences happened in Morpeth, North Tyneside and South Tyneside and the rest were in Lancashire and Yorkshire.
After one theft in April 2017 there was a police chase in County Durham during which Carter and Russell drove dangerously. Russell was arrested trying to escape while Carter fled but left his mobile phone at the scene so was identified.
Curtis, 29, of Ripley Avenue, North Shields, who has 47 previous convictions, was jailed for five-and-a-half years last February for a similar conspiracy involving David Carter Liam Williams
the theft of Fords worth around £500,000.
Carter, 29, of Courtfield Road, Walker, who has 12 previous convictions, took no active part in the plot after his arrest for dangerous driving in April 2017. Williams, 21, of Didcot Avenue, North Shields, took Carter’s place when he left the gang and Russell, 21, of Hoylake Avenue, Longbenton, also played a role. All four admitted conspiracy to steal and Carter and Russell also admitted dangerous driving.
Curtis was jailed for 28 months to start after his earlier sentence is completed, Carter got 21 months, Russell 26 months and Williams 13 months. Carter and Russell will also be banned from driving for 18 months after their release.
Judge Tim Gittins said: “It was not just high-value vehicles but you were taking away the livelihoods of small traders and medium-sized business owners, those, unlike you, who are prepared to work hard and graft for their living.”
Jane Foley, for Curtis, said he is still serving the five-and-a-half year sentence imposed and the court heard he has been doing well in prison.
Oliver Jarvis, for Carter, said he was involved in less than half of the offences and that he has stopped taking cocaine since his arrest.
He added: “He had been working in the shipyards and lost his job, his relationship broke down and he started using cocaine. He has never before been to jail.”
John Wilkinson, for Russell, said his father is unwell and he is his carer.
He added: “I suspect he went along with others in this case but he did so with his eyes wide open and for some time.”
Jamie Adams, for Williams, said: “He was a law-abiding decent young man and was thought highly of.
“He has a form of cerebral palsy which causes a limp and he has suffered bullying.”
Mr Adams added that he is easily led and is remorseful.
After the case, Detective Constable Gillian Coulson, from North East Regional Special Operations Unit (NERSOU), said: “This is a fantastic outcome with all involved spending time behind bars for their crimes.
“In line with Operation Sentinel, this demonstrates the lengths and robust action we will take, alongside partners, to ensure justice for victims and that communities are kept safe.
“They thought they had outwitted officers however, today shows just how wrong they were.” Penny-Evans, said: “Everyone has the right to feel safe in their own home and neighbourhood. When tenants make people feel unsafe, we won’t hesitate to intervene and use all our powers.
“I hope this sends a clear message that we will support our good tenants and seek to evict those who repeatedly breach their tenancy agreement by acting anti-socially.”
Director of Customer Services at YHN, Matthew Foreman, said: “Eviction is always a last resort for us but something we won’t hesitate to do if a person’s behaviour is affecting their neighbours and the community.
“As in this case, anonymous complaints can be accepted as evidence proving that people need not worry about coming forward and reporting anti-social behaviour.
“We worked very closely with the council and the police to get this resolution and will continue to pursue evictions when we must to benefit the community as a whole. I would like to thank all those who helped us secure this eviction and closure.”
In almost all cases the work for which these vans were used was disrupted, no doubt at great financial cost