15 March 2024 , 20:02
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The head of Interpol, Jurgen Stock, said this week highly organised digital attackers are taking over from armed robbers – known as blaggers in the criminal fraternity – as the world increasingly goes online.
Speaking in London, Mr Stock said: “The classical bank robbery is about to die out. Only the less skilled or equipped criminals would go for the risks regarding a robbery. It’s much easier to attack the bank online.”
As the curtain comes down on a criminal era we examine some of the most audacious heists in British history:
Barclays Bank, Wembley, 1972 - £237,000
Bertie Smalls was a leading member of the Wembley Mob when arrested over the 1972 Barclays Bank robbery. The supergrass role came to prominence when he gave evidence against his old armed gang over the £237,000 raid in North West London. After Smalls left the witness box at the Old Bailey in 1974, the seven accused made gun gestures and sang “We’ll Meet Again”.
During a succession of trials at the Old Bailey over six months, his evidence jailed 28 villains, who received a total of 414 years. Derek “Bertie” Smalls admitted to his part in 20 robberies but was handed immunity from prosecution after providing Queen’s evidence. Chief Supt Jack Slipper of the Yard said: “Smalls is the greatest weapon the police have ever had against the underworld. He will have to spend the rest of his life with a £1million price on his head because so many people want to get even with him.” Smalls spent his final days in Croydon, South London, and died of natural causes aged 72 in 2008.
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Barclays Bank in Wembley, North West London, suffered a huge robbery in 1972 (ANL/REX/Shutterstock)Lloyds Bank, Baker Street, 1971 - £3million
Jewel thieves dubbed the Millionaire Moles rented a shop next door but one to a Lloyd’s Bank in Baker Street, London, and tunnelled 40 feet under a restaurant to escape with a £3million haul worth £40million today.
Planning began in 1970 when Brian Reader and Tony Gavin realised the bank held unusually huge amount of cash and valuables. Accomplice Reg Tucker opened an account and memorised the inside of the vault using an umbrella to measure it and later drew a map on which to base the raid. So far, so perfect. Then all seemed lost when, during the raid, a radio ham overheard the gang’s walkie-talkie messages. Police searched 750 banks in a eight-mile radius...but not the Baker Street one.
The gang emptied 268 safe deposit boxes. They were caught because one member had used his real name to lease the empty shop. The burglary remains the UK’s largest. Four men were convicted, including Gavin, and got up to 12 years but Reader escaped prosecution.
Some 268 safe deposit boxes were emptied at the Lloyds Bank on Baker Street in 1971 (Blackbrow/Daily Mail/REX/Shutterstock)Silver Bullion, Barking, 1980 - £3.5million
A tall, authoritative-looking man dressed in a police uniform stepped into the dual carriageway in East London one March morning. He raised his right hand deliberately and signalled at a lorry travelling towards him to stop.
The man’s determined stare immediately convinced the driver to hit his brakes, and the vehicle came shuddering to a halt in a lay-by. Then, while the baffled driver started to wind down his window, a blue van suddenly loomed up in his rearview mirror. Five masked men carrying shotguns and a pistol jumped from the van, screaming at him to get out.
Within a minute, the driver and his colleague were tied up and their lorry was being driven away with one of the hijackers behind the wheel. Watching it disappear into the distance with its cargo of 321 silver bars worth £3.5million in total, the lanky, balding figure in the police uniform smiled to himself.
Mickey “Skinny” Gervaise knew he had pulled off what was, on that grey day in 1980, one of the biggest robberies in British history. Armed robbers Lennie Gibson and Mickey Sewell were later jailed after Gervaise gave evidence against them.
Anxious customers wait outside the Bank of America to See if their safe deposit boxes were robbed in 1975 (Evening News/REX/Shutterstock)Bank of America, London, 1975 - £8million
Then the largest bank burglary in the world, the 1975 raid on the Mayfair branch of Bank of America netted £8million (£78m at today’s value).
The gang got the safe code from inside man Stuart Buckley, a bank electrician who hid in the roof space above the vault and noted the combination as officials opened it. He later turned informer, shopping seven of the gang who were sentenced to terms up to 23 years. Judge Alan King-Hamilton said he was determined they would not enjoy the fruits of their haul, only £500,000 of which was recovered. However, the alleged mastermind, identified by police as Frank Maple, fled to Morocco and has never been seen since.
A tunnel leads into the vault at the Hatton Garden Safe Deposit company in London after the heist (PA)Hatton Gardens, London, 2015 - £14million
The gang who pulled off this burglary was nicknamed Dad’s Army on account of their advanced age.
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Mastermind Brian Reader, then 76, had been convicted over the Brink’s-Mat robbery and escaped prosecution for his role in the Baker Street burglary.
The youngest in the team was Michael Seed, then 54, dubbed ‘Basil the Ghost’. He was one of two raiders who climbed into the vault to loot 73 safe deposit boxes.
The gang drilled through the thick concrete wall during the Easter bank holiday weekend. Seed, who paid no taxes, claimed no benefits and rarely used a bank account, evaded capture for three years. Police finally raided his flat, in Islington, North London, about two miles from Hatton Garden.
The son of a DNA pioneer, he inherited his father’s brilliant mind, but used his talents in crime, disabling the security system in the vault. He is serving a 10-year sentence. The other seven got 42 years between them but some were extended later.
John Palmer (centre) was part of the gang behind the Brink's-Mat operation (Keith Waldegrave/ANL/REX/Shutterstock)
Brian Reader masterminded the Hatton Gardens heist (PA)Brink's-Mat, London, 1983 - £26million
Britain's biggest armed raid was planned by “Mad” Micky McAvoy and Brian “The Colonel” Robinson, who were later jailed and cheated out of their share.
McAvoy, then 30, was one of six South London robbers who robbed the Heathrow Brink’s-Mat security depot on November 26, 1983. Speaking publicly for the first time before his death aged 71 this year, McAvoy said they cut the gold into “two parcels”. He said: “One-and-a-half ton went with me. A fellow I know took one-and-a-half ton. That was it”.
McAvoy said police offered to cut his term from 25 to 18 years if he and Robinson returned a share of the gold. He asked the gang to help but was told it had gone.
McAvoy told Neil Forsyth, writer of BBC drama The Gold, he was betrayed by the others, who vowed to bust him out in exchange for his share. He said: “Treachery... a big knife in your back.”
Robinson’s brother-in-law, Anthony Black, and Kenneth Noye were also convicted. John Palmer was acquitted for knowingly melting down stolen gold. Tony White was cleared of planning the raid.