Man jailed following 'brazen' £440,000 Rolex robbery in Westminster

A man has been jailed for four years after he was involved in stealing £440,000 worth of goods with a zombie knife.

Wayne Russell, 23, was sentenced at Southwark Crown Court on Friday 28 January, after pleading guilty to conspiracy to commit robbery.

On 5 June 2018 Russell and five other men drove a moped into the front of Watches of Switzerland on Regent Street.

Three of the men were armed with sledgehammers and ran into the store while Russell stood outside with a large zombie knife preventing members of the public and security from intervening.

In total 35 Rolex watches were stolen, worth a total of £440,000.

Russell was also sentenced to 16 months for possession of an offensive weapon.

When the security alarm started going off, the suspects left the shop and all six began to make their getaway on the vehicles.

A passing police car saw what had happened and chased the six men, who all fled in different directions.

A zombie knife was later recovered on Regent Street.

Officers seized CCTV from the area which showed Russell removing his gloves, putting his jacket in a bin and then walking into Five Guys on Argyll Street.

Following an appeal last year, Russell was identified and later arrested.

One of Russell’s accomplices, Jamie Farrell, 34, of Havelock Street, Islington, was sentenced in July 2018 to eight years for his role in the incident after pleading guilty to conspiracy to commit robbery and possession of a bladed article.

Farrell was detained near the scene following a police chase; while running from officers he also dropped a rucksack containing 11 of the watches.

Detective Sergeant Gary Taylor, from the Met’s Central Specialist Crime, said: “This was a brazen robbery which not only left the store significantly out of profit but also left staff fearing for their lives.

“I hope this result demonstrates our commitment to tackling violent crime and disrupting criminal gangs who think they can get away with this kind of behaviour.

“We will do everything in our power to identify those involved and bring them to justice so that they can cause no further harm on the streets of the capital.”

Have a story you think we should be covering ? Email gabriella.clare@reachplc.com.

Want more from MyLondon? Sign up to our daily newsletters for all the latest and greatest from across London here.