The Hatton Garden Heist And Lessons To Be Learned

Now that 9 members of the Hatton Garden heist have been remanded in custody, to be brought to court at a later date, there are a few issues that this raises for the future and some questions to be asked.

One question I would like to ask is that why would a 76 year old risk everything by getting involved in such criminal activity? How many years has he got to live to enjoy the trappings of wealth in the unlikely event that he had managed to avoid being caught and convicted? All I can think is that he was not the brains of this organisation, although what else he could have brought to the table at the ripe old age of 76 I have no idea. Surely he could have stuck to gardening, bowling or running a flower stall?!!

The heist on Hatton Garden Safety Deposit Ltd was one of the biggest heists ever carried out in Britain and it is believed they made off around £200 million in jewellery and cash. What is very concerning is that the press and media are already romanticising these criminals by using language that to me is glamourising these thugs and criminals.

The heist has been called "daring" and even one of the detectives on the case said it had all the hallmarks of a "Hollywood Film Production". The police have also called the raid "highly audacious". No doubt producers are already getting their cast together and urging screenwriters to have something in place so that a film will be out before the year is out along with a TV series and books. And if, at their senior age, any of the heist members are still alive at the end of their sentence, which may be stretching it a bit, no doubt they will be paid a handsome sum for their memoirs.

It is believed that significant amounts of the jewels and the cash have now been recovered. To get into the vaults it is thought that the thieves disabled a lift and then abseiled down a shaft which I suppose is rather clever but they will not be feeling so clever now as they contemplate the rest of their life in custody.

I hope that the police have learnt some lessons from this and are more vigilant in the future when alarms are activated. Even with the huge cuts in the police service that the Tories have brought in I am sure they could have sent out a patrol, particularly when you look at the possible sums at stake.