On Friday, December 11, a 17-year-old boy and four men were jailed at Woolwich Crown Court for more than 30 years in total after being convicted of conspiracy to rob. Michael Ogun, 22, of Poppy Drive, Enfield, pleaded guilty and was sentenced to seven years’ imprisonment.

Thomas O’Connor, 23, of Swan Lane, Southwark, maintained his innocence but was jailed for eight-and-a-half years. Jamie Hull, 21, of Tranton Road, Southwark, was also found guilty and was jailed for eight years.

Gary O’Brien, 22, of Brunel Road, Southwark, pleaded guilty and was sentenced to four-and-a-half years’ imprisonment.

The four men on October 9, 2014, battered the shop window of an east London jewelry store, Attenborough Jewellers, on Bethnal Green Road, with sledgehammers as frightened staff and onlookers looked on in shock. (screen grab of the robbery beneath)
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CCTV shows the shutter falling shut to keep out the robbers but not before one was able to reach in and grab Rolex watches and jewellery worth £12,000, police said. The four men then made off using three motorcyles.

A 17-year-old boy from Southwark, who cannot be named for legal reasons, pleaded guilty and was sentenced to serve three years in a youth detention centre.

Police believe other may have been involved with the incident and enquiries continue to trace them, Scotland Yard said.

The Met praised members of the public who aided the enquiry by reporting relevant discoveries and observations to the police. One person found a backpack containing clothing, which had been weighed down with bricks, on the Thames shore near Rotherhithe Street, Southwark.

Investigating officer Detective Sergeant Andy McGuire, of the Met’s Flying Squad, said:

"This is the perfect example of how members of the public reporting what may seem to be insignificant things can actually help police crack a case. This was an aggressive robbery which left store staff shaken and onlookers terrified, but thanks to the quick reactions of local officers, information from the public and team work across the Met, these men are now in prison."