United Kingdom Police Foil Underground Jewellery Heist.

Police in the United Kingdom have foiled an elaborate underground jewellery heist in south London as part of a massive crackdown on retail crime across the capital.

Donjoe Media gathered that officers stopped a gang that tried to tunnel into a jewellery store on Mitcham Road in Tooting. The criminals dug from an adjacent massage parlour during the early hours of July 17, but police arrived within minutes and caught them red-handed.

According to the Metropolitan Police, the operation was part of a two-week offensive codenamed Operation Zoridon. During the exercise, 42 suspects were arrested and about 400 suspected rogue businesses were inspected across London.

At Kingston Crown Court on October 23, three men were jailed for a combined 10 years and two months. The court heard they had earlier pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit burglary in August. Detectives linked them to other burglaries worth over £700,000.

Ioan Asafeti, 39, was sentenced to four years and 10 months. Sergiu Plastin, 42, got three years and four months, while Laurentiu-Daniel Nitisoara, 38, received two years. Police arrested Plastin at Stansted Airport while trying to leave the country.

In a separate operation, officers raided shops suspected of selling stolen goods. At a premises in Hounslow on October 12, they recovered 300 suspected stolen phones and £15,000 cash. Two men were arrested and the shop was shut for three months.

Another raid in Brixton on October 19 led to the recovery of dozens of stolen phones and over £5,000 cash. Three men were arrested for handling stolen goods and money laundering, the Met said https://www.met.police.uk/news/london/news/2024/october/met-seizes-stolen-goods-in-retail-crime-crackdown/.

The police said retail theft often links to other crimes. During a check in Lewisham, officers found tins of suspected stolen goods, a machete, and stolen passports hidden in a sweet tin. Two people were arrested.

In Clapham, officers recovered £1,000 worth of branded meat stolen from supermarkets, along with knives and drugs. The force also targeted car boot sales in Hounslow, where five pallets of power tools and fake Dyson products were seized.

For the first time, market organizers were warned they could be prosecuted if they allow the sale of stolen items. The move is aimed at cutting off avenues for criminals to sell stolen goods.

London Mayor Sadiq Khan praised the operation, saying shoplifting is not victimless and hurts honest businesses. The Met said new reporting systems have helped double positive outcomes for shoplifting cases, with theft down by nearly 4% this year.

Police urged residents not to buy cheap goods from suspicious vendors, saying it funds violent gangs.

By Jonadab Oluikpe