Two men jailed after stealing £247,000 worth of watches

Two men have been jailed for a total of more than six years after they were part of a group that stole £247,000 worth of watches from a jewellery store.

Callum Knox, 35, and Lee Gibbon, 38, were sentenced at Southampton Crown Court after helping break into the Beaverbrooks store in Basingstoke’s Festival Place on Monday 24 February last year.

The pair were part of a group that travelled from Southampton to Basingstoke in stolen vehicles on cloned number plates, before cycling into the shopping centre.

Members of the group used sledgehammers to smash the store’s windows before grabbing a large number of high value watches.

Three offenders, George Mason, 39, from Kingsdown Way, Southampton, Kurtis Lake, 24, from Cobbett Road, Southampton, and Jamie Dalton, 30, from Burgoyne Road, Southampton, were arrested at the scene and have already been jailed.

Knox, from Woodside Road, Eastleigh, and Gibbon, from Spring Road, Southampton, were later identified as suspects after officers examined forensic evidence from the scene.

On Thursday 28 October, Gibbon was jailed for two years and nine months after admitting burglary other than in a dwelling.

He was jailed for an additional three months for an unrelated police assault charge. The sentences will run consecutively.

Knox was jailed for three years and 10 months after also admitting burglary other than in a dwelling.

Detective Constable Paul Beasley said: “This was a pre-planned and targeted burglary where the suspects ended up stealing £247,000 worth of jewellery.

“Three men were arrested at the scene, but what followed was an extensive investigation by detectives who managed to track down two others involved in the crime.

“I’m delighted with the result and I hope this reassures local businesses that we take crimes like this very seriously and investigate all available lines of enquiry to identify those responsible and bring them to justice.”