'Grandpa Gang' Stole $20 Million in One of England's Biggest Heists

The 'Grandpa Gang' shocked everyone when they pulled off a burglary worth millions of dollars, authorities shared. The burglary happened at Hatton Garden, London's jewelry district, over the Easter weekend in 2015, The Guardian reported.

The group managed to loot millions of dollars in cash, jewelry, and other valuables, the outlet reported.

They were allowed into the establishment through a fire exit by a man named 'Basil', BBC reported. The gang had disabled all the alarms, but one of them went off.

A security guard who came to check the scene found nothing and left. He was instructed not to go inside the establishment without police, who had also been informed. Police did not send any officers so he went home instead, BBC reported. 

The gang used an elevator shaft to climb down to the vault, George Herald reported. They used heavy equipment to drill through a thick concrete wall.

Their initial attempt at breaking through the wall was unsuccessful because of several safe deposit boxes, BBC reported. They decided to return the following day to complete their objective. 

The next day, using heavy equipment, the robbers succeeded in their attempt, of breaking through the wall. The group took away with them an estimated 14 million pounds ($20 million) of gold bullion, diamonds, jewelry and cash, BBC reported. In the surveillance footage, police spotted a van, which led them to the robbers. 

The group got the moniker 'Grandpa Gang' because most of its members were above 50 years of age, Daily Mail reported. The youngest one was 42, while two were in their 70s and the oldest Brian Reader was 76. Reader was the leader of the entire operation. The main conspirators along with him were John Collins, 75, Terry Perkins, 67, and Daniel Jones, 60.

Investigators did not immediately arrest the group and followed them instead, BBC reported. The police scoured through their phone records, which gave them a map of their movement both during and after the robbery.

Officials searched through the perpetrators' homes and found a book titled Forensics for Dummies, the New York Post reported. The book was used to understand the investigative techniques of authorities in such cases. The learnings from the book helped them not to leave any forensic evidence at the crime scene.

Commander Peter Spindler, who oversaw the investigation shared that the group made a lot of mistakes that helped the authorities catch them, Tatler reported. "They were analog criminals ill-prepared for digital detectives," he explained.

The group got themselves filmed in a pub discussing the robbery, and called each other numerous times before and after the heist, all of which helped officials apprehend them, Tatler reported. 

Only a third of the loot was recovered by police, Daily Mail reported. A bag of jewelry from the loot was found hidden under the gravestone of the father and brother of Jones' partner.

Most members of the group had some criminal past. Reader had been jailed for a 1983 heist at the Brink's-Mat high-security vault.

Basil, who let them in through the fire exit remains free with a reward on his head, The New York Times reported. 

In September 2016, Collins, Reader, Perkins, and Jones pleaded guilty to conspiracy to burgle, The Independent reported.

Other conspirators William Lincoln, 60, and Carl Wood, 58, were convicted at Woolwich Crown Court of the same charge while Hugh Doyle, 48, was found guilty of concealing stolen property, The Guardian reported.

Perkins' daughter and brother-in-law confessed to the charge of conspiracy to conceal criminal property, BBC reported. Collins, Jones, Perkins, Wood, Lincoln, and Doyle were sentenced to up to seven years for their charges. 

Reader, who was considered the brain behind the heist, was sentenced to six years and three months in jail by Judge Christopher Kinch in 2016, BBC reported. The sentencing took into consideration that Reader was seriously unwell following a stroke while being held at Belmarsh Prison. At the time of sentencing, he was suffering from prostate cancer, loss of hearing, and other issues. 

In 2018, Reader was released on health grounds, Tatler reported. He passed away in September 2023 at his home in Dartford, Kent, Sun reported.