Goldfinger murder linked to £ 14m heist Killing is probed as Diamond Wheezer gang gets 34 years
The massive hole the crooks drilled to get into the vault of the Hatton Garden safe deposit centre last year A GANGLAND murder was sensationally linked to the £ 14million Hatton Garden raid yesterday.
The connection between the break- in and the underworld execution of gangster John “Goldfinger” Palmer was revealed as five Hatton Garden gang members were jailed for a total of 34 years.
Palmer, 65, was shot six times in his garden in South Weald, Essex, on June 24 last year.
Detectives hunting his murderer said the Hatton Garden theft in London’s jewellery quarter “is part of our inquiries along with other major crimes”.
Yesterday, three ringleaders of the gang, nicknamed the Diamond Wheezers because of their age, were each jailed for seven years.
John Collins, 75, Terry Perkins, 67, and Daniel Jones, 61, had been warned to expect far longer jail terms. But Judge Christopher Kinch QC gave them credit for admitting conspiracy to burgle at an earlier hearing and reduced their sentences by a third.
Perkins, jailed for 22 years for the £ 6million Security Express robbery in 1983, said “Thank you” as the judge sentenced him.
The three grey- haired criminals have already spent almost a year in Belmarsh, Britain’s most secure jail in south London. They could be free in two- and- a- half years. But their time behind bars could be extended following proceeds of crime hearings to begin in January next year.
William Lincoln, 60, and Carl Wood, 59, who played lesser roles in the crime but denied the charges, got seven and six years respectively.
Hugh Doyle, 49, got a 21- month suspended sentence after he was found guilty of helping to conceal part of the loot.
Escaped
Mastermind Brian Reader, 77, was absent from the dock at London’s Woolwich Crown Court after suffering a stroke in jail last month. He is set to be sentenced on March 21.
Diamonds, gold, cash and other valuables were stolen when the gang drilled their way into the basement vault of the Hatton Garden safe deposit centre last Easter.
The crooks were rounded up a few weeks later. Police have recovered a third of the haul. But they are still searching for the mysterious gang member known only as “Basil” who has so far escaped justice.
Judge Kinch said: “Far from stumbling into 21st century crime as relics of a past era, the conspirators were clearly highly aware of the dangers of leaving traces that could lead to their identification.”
Palmer was shot last year by an assassin who hid in bushes at his home. The hitman escaped in a waiting vehicle.
Detective Chief Inspector Stephen Jennings said: “There are people or groups of people who may have wished to do him harm.
“Therefore our search is not just for the gunman but for a person or group of people who may have commissioned the killing.”
Palmer, jailed for time share fraud in 2001, had been charged with fraud, firearm possession and money laundering after an eight- year investigation in Tenerife, where he had a second home. Days before his death, he had been warned he could face up to 15 years in jail.
He became known as “Goldfinger” after he was accused of smelting gold bars stolen in the £ 26million Brink’s- MAT robbery in 1983.
He was later cleared.