Three Romanian men who were caught attempting to tunnel into a south London jewellery store have been jailed after being linked to a burglary spree in which more than £700,000 worth of goods was stolen.
Ioan Asafeti, 39, Laurentiu-Daniel Nitisoara, 38, and Sergiu Plastin, 42, targeted Selvaraja Gold House on Mitcham Road, Tooting, after breaking into the premises in May.
Two months later, the gang returned and tried to break into the same jeweller by digging through an adjoining wall. Their plan was stopped before they could enter, and the three men were eventually sentenced to a combined 10 years and two months in prison.
Police body-worn camera footage showed officers discovering a hole in the wall of what appeared to be a shower room inside a nearby massage parlour.
Several bags filled with digging tools and other equipment were also found at the scene.
An officer can be heard explaining in the footage: “They’ve been trying to get through the wall into the jewellers, but it doesn’t appear they’ve managed to get in.”
He added: “There are loads of tools in here, so we’re going to need someone to come in and deal with this.”
Nitisoara was arrested in a nearby alley. Body-worn footage showed him approaching officers with his hands raised as police arrived at the scene.
Ioan Asafeti, 39, of no fixed address, received a sentence of four years and 10 months
Sergiu Plastin, 42, of Portadown, County Armagh, was sentenced to three years and four months
Laurentiu-Daniel Nitisoara, 38, of no fixed address, was sentenced to two years in prison
Police discovered a hole in the wall of the south London jewellery shop after the group attempted to use it to gain entry
The footage also showed officers helping Asafeti down the side of a building after finding him hiding on a rooftop. He was then arrested and taken away by police.
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Plastin was detained at Stansted Airport later on July 17 while attempting to travel to Ireland.
Detectives from the Metropolitan Police’s Flying Squad identified a vehicle connected to the gang before using mobile phone data to locate the 42-year-old.
The three men had arrived in the UK shortly before beginning their burglary campaign.
The investigation connected the group to a series of burglaries across London between May and July. Police said the men primarily targeted jewellery businesses, carrying out overnight tunnel raids to bypass security measures.
CCTV obtained by investigators showed members of the gang collecting tools and other equipment later used in the attempted break-in.
The Metropolitan Police said checks made through Interpol indicated that the group could also be linked to similar crimes elsewhere in Europe.
Detective Chief Inspector Craig Magee, of the Met’s Flying Squad, said: “Today’s sentencing sends a clear message: if you target London businesses, we’ll catch you and you will face justice.”
‘Our crackdown on thieves is delivering results. We’re driving down commercial burglary across the capital, with offences falling by 11% in the past 12 months.
‘The arrests of these three thieves didn’t just stop this burglary. They formed part of a wider Flying Squad investigation that uncovered an organised crime group linked to a string of jewellery shop break-ins across London worth more than £700,000.’
At Kingston Crown Court in August, the three men pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit burglary with intent to steal and cause criminal damage.
They were jailed at the same court on Friday.
Asafeti, of no fixed address, was sentenced to four years and 10 months, Plastin, of Portadown, Co Armagh, was sentenced to three years and four months and Nitisoara, of no fixed address, was sentenced to two years.