Gang of thieves who hit cash machine in Bedfordshire jailed over £700k haul
A gang of thieves who raided almost £700k from cash machines across the UK and were caught boasting about their haul on WhatsApp have been jailed.
The men struck nine times using specialist equipment, including angle grinders and the jaws of life in a spree lasting nearly a year.
They chose stolen high-performance cars, using multiple fake number plates each time, to use in their getaways.
The gang shared WhatsApp messages and voice notes, boasting that the cops had no evidence on them - saying 'we're not stupid'.
Using a flatbed truck, the raiders struck in Bedfordshire as well as West Mercia, Leicestershire, Avon and Somerset, Greater Manchester, Cumbria, Cambridgeshire, Northamptonshire and Staffordshire.
Their downfall came when they booked out two holiday lets in Cumbria to act as a base of operations while they struck in the county on three consecutive days, from August 11, 2024.
They forced open cash machines at three shops, stealing more than £128,000 in the process, using a stolen Audi as the getaway vehicle.
But a police officer spotted the gang's stolen Audi being transported on a low loader back to the Midlands. The transporter was stopped and the driver Daniel Hickenbottom was arrested.
A major investigation followed and identified the rest of the gang, through analysis of CCTV, mobile phone records, WhatsApp voice recordings and forensic examinations including fingerprints and DNA.
Noel Reilly, Craig Howell and Simon Pagett would plan and carry out the raids, buying clothing to wear on the break ins and arriving in stolen cars with the right tools to break into the cash machines.
Oliver Matthews was the owner of Bloxwich Resprays, where the gang would store their stolen vehicles and use as a base. He would drive around the country after crimes to assist the gang.
They were convicted last year and sentenced in October, but for legal reasons the sentences handed to the gang can only now be reported.
Craig Howell, 44, of Wolverhampton, was jailed for 10 years for conspiracy to burgle, handle stolen goods and possess criminal property.
Noel Reilly, 46, of Bromsgrove, was jailed for eight years and six months for conspiracy to burgle, handling stolen goods and possessing criminal property.
Simon Pagett, 43, of Bloxwich, was also jailed for eight years and six months for conspiracy to burgle, handling stolen goods and possessing criminal property.
Oliver Matthews, 39, of Baneberry Drive, Featherstone, was jailed for 40 months for guilty to conspiracy to burgle.
Daniel Hickenbottom, 38, of Bloxwich, was jailed for three years and nine months for conspiracy to burgle, handle stolen goods and possessing criminal property.
All men had pleaded guilty.
West Midlands Police Det Sgt Tom Frenchum, said: "A huge amount of planning and preparation went into these offences and the gang showed a high level of sophistication throughout, but our detectives worked tirelessly to disrupt them and now put them behind bars.
"The gang had specific roles – some would carry out the ATM attacks, while others would help with the logistics of transporting the stolen vehicles and the specialist cutting equipment."