Romanian gang who stole £140,000 during series of brazen cash machine raids in UK are jailed for total of nearly 14 years

  • Court heard three of the gang arrived in the UK 'soley' for the purpose of crime
  • Details of the 'sophisticated' attacks not revealed amid fears of copycat crimes 
  • Eight ATMs around Kent, Essex and south-east London were targeted from 2019 

A Romanian gang of 'hackers' who stole almost £140,000 in electronic 'raids' on cashpoint machines have been jailed for a total of 13 years and seven months.

A court heard three of the six-strong gang arrived in the UK 'solely and exclusively' for the purpose of committing crime.

Exact details of how the 'sophisticated and professional' attacks were carried out were not revealed after the judge warned of copycat crimes.

A court heard three of the six-strong gang arrived in the UK 'solely and exclusively' for the purpose of committing crime

A court heard three of the six-strong gang arrived in the UK 'solely and exclusively' for the purpose of committing crime

The gang even had the audacity to return to the scene of one of their crimes to target a bank's second cash machine

The gang even had the audacity to return to the scene of one of their crimes to target a bank's second cash machine

Ioan Constantin, 28, Petru-Giani Feraru, 23, Razvan Danaila, 31, his brother Robert Danaila, 26, Victor Camara, 33, and 19-year-old Constantin Lupoaie all admitted conspiracy to steal

Ioan Constantin, 28, Petru-Giani Feraru, 23, Razvan Danaila, 31, his brother Robert Danaila, 26, Victor Camara, 33, and 19-year-old Constantin Lupoaie all admitted conspiracy to steal

But the men were said to have made 'concerted' efforts to steal cash, often over a drawn-out period of time at night having previously carried out reconnaissance and relying on a laptop installed with malware.

A total of eight ATMs at banks, post offices and shops in Kent, Essex and south-east London were targeted, with the first occurring on New Year's Eve 2019.

The gang even had the audacity to return to the scene of one of their crimes to target a bank's second cash machine.

They also immobilised CCTV at another by spraying over a camera.

Ioan Constantin, 28, Petru-Giani Feraru, 23, Razvan Danaila, 31, his brother Robert Danaila, 26, Victor Camara, 33, and 19-year-old Constantin Lupoaie all admitted conspiracy to steal.

Prosecutor Patrick Dennis told Maidstone Crown Court, Kent, that three of the eight 'raids' were unsuccessful in terms of financial loss.

However, the gang were still able to nab a total of £136,080 from the remaining five and caused around £32,000 of damage in all their attempts.

'This offending involved sophisticated and well-planned attacks on ATMs. It was professional, targeted, high-value criminality,' said Mr Dennis.

'There were eight offences in all, with Ioan Constantin involved in seven, and all, perhaps unsurprisingly, took place at night.

'All the defendants played substantial and prominent roles, targeting not hundreds in cash but what had to be in the thousands.'

Constantin, from Basildon, Essex, was jailed for three years and four months, and Feraru, of no fixed address, was sentenced to 25 months' imprisonment.

Razvan Danaila, of no fixed address, was jailed for two-and-a-half years, while his brother Robert Danaila, also of no fixed address, and Camara, from Basildon, were each given two years and four months' imprisonment.

Lupoaie, of Stanmore Hill, Stanmore, Middlesex, was locked up for 12 months.

Passing sentence on Thursday, Judge Philip Statman said Constantin was 'a prime mover and well at it' in the series of 'audacious' raids.

They were not victimless crimes, he added, and had resulted in significant impact on business owners.

'While these are not what are colloquially known as ram-raids, what has occurred involves professional criminality,' said Judge Statman.

'Each of you played different roles, each linking together to commit these crimes, and you, Ioan Constantin, played the leading role of those who are in the dock.'

Seven of the thefts or attempted thefts occurred over a four-week period, while the eighth occurred in April last year after four of the gang had been arrested, charged and remanded in custody.

The first took place on December 31 2019 at Barclays Bank in Colchester High Street. A total of £94,220 was stolen and £5,879 worth of damage caused.

The court heard of the six defendants in the dock, only Constantin was involved. His blood was later recovered by police from an inner part of the ATM.

The second theft attempt occurred on January 11 last year, just two days after Feraru and the two Danaila brothers had flown into the country.

Mr Dennis said: 'The Crown say that they came to this country solely and exclusively for the purpose of joining this conspiracy.

'Ioan Constantin arranged for them to be picked up from the airport, organising a taxi. He then helped them to check in to the Ibis Hotel in Barking, Essex, in rooms booked in Camara's name.'

The cashpoint they targeted was at a Nisa Local store in Gravesend, Kent, where Razvan Danaila was seen taking photos of it shortly before they struck.

No money was stolen however despite two attempts over several hours, but the men adopted specific roles which they carried on throughout the conspiracy.

'Feraru and Robert Danaila would be physically at the ATM, Razvan Danaila and Camara would carry out reconnaissance, controlling the laptop, and Camara would additionally do the driving,' said the prosecutor.

'Constantin, perhaps unsurprisingly, attended but thereafter he stopped attending and just directed.'

A further three cash machines were hit at a post office in Kidbrooke, south east London, a McColl's newsagent in Bromley, Kent, and a second post office in Gravesend between January 14 and 17.

A branch of NatWest in Barking was the next target in the early hours of January 24, with £33,760 stolen and just under £2,000 of damage caused.

The gang returned to the same bank just six days later to target a second ATM, the first still being out of action.

The first took place on December 31 2019 at Barclays Bank in Colchester High Street. A total of £94,220 was stolen and £5,879 worth of damage caused

The first took place on December 31 2019 at Barclays Bank in Colchester High Street. A total of £94,220 was stolen and £5,879 worth of damage caused 

A total of eight ATMs at banks, post offices and shops in Kent, Essex and south-east London were targeted, with the first occurring on New Year's Eve 2019

A total of eight ATMs at banks, post offices and shops in Kent, Essex and south-east London were targeted, with the first occurring on New Year's Eve 2019

This time they were unsuccessful but caused £2,500 of damage.

Feraru's blood was later found in the inner workings of the ATM, and after his arrest police found a photograph on his phone with the relevant date and time of the bloodstained machine part.

He and the Danaila brothers were arrested that same day in a restaurant in Ilford, Essex, close to a rented apartment they had moved into from the hotel.

In a case with Razvan Danaila's passport was £1,580 in cash.

Camara, a builder and married dad-of-two, was also arrested but Constantin was not apprehended for another three months.

In that time he had been joined by teenager Lupoaie in committing the eighth and final 'attack'.

A masked Constantin acted as look-out at a Barclays bank ATM in Westgate, Basildon, on April 6 while Lupoaie, then 18, was said to have 'performed the laptop function under direction'.

'For over an hour they made a concerted effort. Nothing was stolen but they caused almost £15,000 worth of damage,' said Mr Dennis.

Constantin and Lupoaie were stopped by police as they ran away. The teenager, who was carrying a bag containing the 'necessary equipment' for the cash theft, was arrested but Constantin fled and remained at large for a further three weeks.

The court was told the married construction worker has eight convictions for 11 offences in the UK, including theft, going equipped, and facilitating illegal gambling, and one conviction for fraud in France.

His five co-defendants are of previous good character in the UK, although Razvan Danaila has been convicted of burglary in his native country.

James Riley, defending Constantin, said it was not accepted that he had organised the arrival from Romania of three of his accomplices, or that he was 'at the top' of the conspiracy.

Elena Papamichael, defending Feraru, said he was tasked with 'sticking his arm into the ATM to grab the cables' because of his 'small and slim' build.

She added he had come to the UK for legitimate work but 'readily joined' the gang when his construction job fell through.

John Fitzgerald, defending Razvan Danaila, said he had been friends with Constantin since childhood but had not left Romania, and his wife of 15 years and young daughter, to commit crime.

His brother Robert was said to have previously worked in the UK in demolition, and was described as 'the muscle and not the brains' of the conspiracy.

Lupoaie was said by the judge to have 'fallen in with bad people' after his five-month-long job in the UK building trade came to an end as a result of the Covid pandemic.

Camara runs his own building firm and was said to have acted 'wholly out of character'.

Due to time spent on remand, Lupoaie is expected to be released immediately but may be subject to deportation.

Confiscation proceedings against all six defendants will be held early next year.

Detective Constable Terry Hanlon, Kent Police's investigating officer for the case, said: 'Each of these offenders were involved in a sophisticated and well-organised conspiracy that resulted in a substantial amount of money being stolen from law-abiding businesses.

'Despite going to great lengths to commit their offences, and committing them across several policing areas, we were able to painstakingly gather a trail of evidence they had overlooked.

'Had they not been detained, I have no doubt that they would have continued to offend and I am pleased that they are now unable to do so. Their successful prosecution is a clear demonstration that Kent Police, and its partners, have the resources and expertise to target high profile offending, regardless of how sophisticated the offenders believe they are.'

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