Three women members of the staff of Marlborough High Street jewellers Deacon & Sons still suffer psychologically from the traumatic raid on the shop by a gang of five masked men last September, Swindon Crown Court was told yesterday (Thursday, March 6).
Judge Douglas Field referred to the nightmare after-effects they suffered from the smash and grab raid when jewellery worth £294,817 was stolen but subsequently recovered by Wiltshire police.
Praising the good work of the police, Judge Field revealed that shop staff members Karen Deacon, Julie Flack and Belinda Goddard still had to face the psychological effects of the raid for some time.
Sentencing the men to a total of more than 22 years, Judge Field said: “This was a well-planned robbery and it has many aggravating features. There was the vulnerability of the premises involved, containing valuable stock, which was clearly targeted.
“All of you were part of a team of five which came down from the Midlands to Wiltshire, carrying crowbars, wearing disguises and rushed into that shop. Two of you were smashing through glass units and the three middle-aged ladies were clearly shocked and terrified.
“They have suffered perhaps no physical injuries, but there has been psychological damage.”
The five men, all from Coventry, burst through the door of Deacon & Sons shortly after 9.30 am on September 17 last year.
Paul Gallimore, 33, Marcus Cohen, 34, Linton Summerfield, 20, Cristian Coulson, 20, and Leroy Green, 35, all said they were recruited the night before the robbery took place, it was said in mitigation.
They had driven to Wiltshire on the morning of the raid in two vehicles, a black Seat Ibiza and a gold Citroen Picasso. The Ibiza was left in a village lane far from the jewellers in Marlborough, as the five made their way to the High Street in the Picasso.
CCTV seen in court showed four of the men entering the shop wearing black clothes and balaclavas. Cohen is seen to grab Karen Deacon by the arm and demand to be taken to the store’s safe, the court was told.
As she leads Cohen away, the remaining three smash through the glass units in the store with crowbars, scooping the valuables into black bags as they go.
Within five minutes the quartet left the shop and were driven away by Green, who was waiting outside. The Citroen was driven to where the Ibiza had been parked and after switching cars, the Picasso was discarded and burnt out.
In the ensuing chase on the northbound carriageways of the A346 and A419, the Seat collided with two vehicles near Swindon’s Great Western Hospital and all five men ran from the scene.
Summerfield, Cohen and Gallimore were caught by police officers soon after, but Green and Coulson were ultimately tracked down days later, through forensic evidence left in the car.
Green received a five-and-a-half year sentence, including six months for a separate attempted burglary, Gallimore five years, Cohen four years and eight months, Summerfield and Coulson both received four years each.
Richard Deacon, owner at Deacon & Son, said: “On behalf of Deacon & Son Ltd, we are delighted that the robbers have been sentenced and justice will be served.
“I would like to take the opportunity to thank Wiltshire Police for all their help in apprehending the robbers on the day of the robbery and recovering the property stolen.”