Two men convicted of ‘terrifying’ armed robbery at Gleneagles

Two men have been convicted over their involvement in a “terrifying” £500,000 armed robbery at a prestigious hotel.

Richard Fleming and Liam Richardson carried hammers, a machete and a pistol when they raided Gleneagles Hotel in Auchterarder, Perthshire, on 27 June last year.

The masked men made off with dozens of high-value Rolex watches worth more than half a million pounds, which have not yet been recovered.

The nature of the assault and the “extreme” level of violence shown led staff and visitors to the complex to think they were witnessing a terror attack, police said.

Fleming, 42, from London, who denied being involved, was convicted by a jury yesterday following a trial at the High Court in Edinburgh.

Richardson, 30, also of London, admitted his part in the robbery before the trial got under way.

The pair, described by police as organised criminals, will be sentenced next month.

The raid at the remote site was highly-planned and lasted for less than three minutes.

Armed with the weapons, Fleming and Richardson, acting with another individual, ran into the hotel and smashed up the display cabinets at the Mappin & Webb boutique within the complex.

Placing the employees in a state of fear and alarm for their safety, the men fled with the watches in a vehicle stolen from the south of England.

0 CCTV still of Liam Richardson and Richard Fleming about to board a train and Fleming having a drink, below

Police have since praised members of staff, particularly the security team on site, who went “above and beyond” in their efforts to challenge the robbers and protect the public that day.

A painstaking investigation into the raid was launched by detectives, which ultimately involved more than 200 officers around the UK. Police work included scrutinising hours of CCTV footage and identifying the two vehicles used.

A couple of housebreak-

ings earlier in the month in St Andrews also led police to the suspects, who were arrested in London a few weeks after the Gleneagles attack.

The High Court jury returned majority guilty verdicts against Fleming on a charge of armed robbery and two of assault after two and half hours of deliberations.

Judge Lady Carmichael told both men they would be sentenced on 24 October.