Jail for thieves who used angle-grinder to steal tens of thousands of pounds from cash machines

A gang of four men have been jailed after a series of burglaries which targeted cash machines and safes across Greater Manchester.

Almost £170,000 was taken during two burglaries in Tyldesley and Farnworth.

CCTV captured a group breaking into a business on Elliot Street in February 2018 deactivating an alarm and using an angle-grinder to break into the cash machine.

More than £109,000 was stolen from the device.

A month later, £58,660 was taken from another cash machine during a burglary at a shop in Higher Market Street in Farnworth.

Telephone intelligence linked three men to the crime scene.

Steven Lee Hargreaves was was arrested the next day at his girlfriend's address, where a stolen vehicle was also found. Inside the vehicle were angle grinders, drills and crowbars.

Evidence also linked Joshua Doyle to the burglary, as well as a third incident in Jul 2018 at a public house in Bury, where an office safe was stolen.

Later that day, police found the safe in Middleton with its concrete base smashed and the back of the safe removed.

Paul Frater was arrested close by as he tried to escape by climbing over a garden fence, with £500 in cash stuffed in his socks.

Martin Leo Chubsey, of Sandy Lane, Middleton, was also seen running away and was arrested.

In an nearby garden in Tonge Roughs, officers discovered angle-grinding discs, sledgehammers and the backing for a safe.

Steven Hargreaves has been jailed for four years and two months.

Joshua Doyle will serve four years and six months behind bars, while Jordan Taylor has been jailed for three years.

Speaking after sentencing at Manchester Crown Court in Minshull Street, Detective Sergeant Richard Castley from GMPs Serious Organised Crime Group, said:

“These men thought they could simply steal tens of thousands of pounds and just walk away. Although they thought they had planned their burglaries well, in reality they left evidence behind and a trail of clues for police officers to follow.

“We work tirelessly to analyse telephone intelligence and CCTV in order to bring groups of dangerous individuals to justice and I welcome today’s sentences which will take these men off our streets for a long time.”

The prosecutions followed a joint investigation between police and the intelligence security service, Safercash.

Sarah Staff, Head of SaferCash, British Security Industry Association, said:

“This comprehensive investigation run by GMP’s Serious Organised Crime Group has dismantled a well organised gang. Cash is still an important payment method used widely across the UK. These crimes are impacting on our local high streets and the access of cash which is vital within communities and should be easily accessible. The industry strongly believes that these types of investigations will act as a deterrent to reduce the number of ATM attacks.