Gang stole Land Rovers, trucks and tools in £1m burglary spree across Nottinghamshire
A gang of Nottinghamshire[1] thieves stole nearly GBP1 million worth of plant and agricultural equipment in dozens of burglaries over the space of two years. The group, made up of Colin Warriner, Dominic Alderton, Aaron Booth, Gary Self, Stefan Ward and John Watson, repeatedly targeted different rural communities[2] across the East Midlands between April 2020 and June 2022. Plant and agricultural machinery, pick-up trucks, Land Rovers, vans and power tools were all taken by the gang during a series of large-scale thefts and commercial burglaries from properties across the Rushcliffe and Gedling[3] boroughs of Nottinghamshire, as well as across Lincolnshire and the surrounding East Midlands region.
Led by Warriner, the group specifically targeted rural communities by stealing motor vehicles and other items of plant equipment, with the intention of then breaking up the stolen items into parts to be sold on, or create a new vehicle with a cloned identity. The thefts left their victims without more than GBP910,000 worth of equipment, leaving a “devastating impact”, police[4] said. The group were eventually caught following a joint investigation by Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire Police.
Get the latest news straight to your phone by joining us on WhatsApp[5] Detectives linked 65 offences and carried out a series of early morning raids on May 3, with the two forces working with Leicestershire Police to execute warrants in Newark, Screveton and East Bridgford and in Dunham-on-Trent, in Lincolnshire. Police retrieved a phone a suspect had tried to flush down the toilet at one of the addresses, while two knuckledusters, large quantities of cash and several other phones were also seized during the raids.
Warriner, Alderton, Booth, Self, Ward and Watson were all detained as part of the police sting and later pleaded guilty to charges of conspiring to steal from another.
The gang were jailed for a combined 12 years and four months (Image: Nottinghamshire Police)
Each of them appeared for sentencing at Lincoln Crown Court on December 15, where they were jailed for a combined 12 years and four months.
Detective Sergeant Richard Kinsey, of Nottinghamshire Police, said: “All told, this rural theft conspiracy resulted in nearly a million pounds worth of vehicles, plant and agricultural equipment being stolen, which will have had a devastating impact on these businesses and families.
“The theft of these types of items can have an absolutely debilitating impact on the local businesses that rely on them and directly affect people’s livelihoods, which is precisely why the police dedicated our efforts into tackling these crimes as we understand how much doing this means to rural communities.”
- Warriner, 36, of Dunham Road, Newton-on-Trent, was sentenced to three years and nine months in prison
- Alderton, 36, of no fixed address, was jailed for one year and six months
- Booth, 25, of Occupation Lane, East Bridgford, received a two-year sentence, suspended for two years, while he was also handed a community order and made to complete 30 rehabilitation activity requirement days
- Self, 58, of Coneygrey Spinney, Newark, was jailed for three years and four months
- Ward, 31, of Vessey Close, Newark, was sentenced to one year and six months in prison
- Watson, 36, of Flintham Lane, Screveton, received a sentence of two years and three months
References
- ^ Nottinghamshire (www.nottinghampost.com)
- ^ targeted different rural communities (www.nottinghampost.com)
- ^ Gedling (www.nottinghampost.com)
- ^ police (www.nottinghampost.com)
- ^ Get the latest news straight to your phone by joining us on WhatsApp (www.nottinghampost.com)