Metropolitan Police in the United Kingdom have secured the conviction of ten members of an organised crime ring following an extensive investigation into a series of robberies targeting mobile phone stores across London.
Gatekeepers News reports that the gang, which included four Nigerians, carried out several coordinated attacks on retail outlets, stealing high-value phones and electronic devices worth about £240,000 before their eventual arrest.
According to the police, the investigation, which ran between September and November 2024, involved careful analysis of CCTV footage, phone records, DNA samples, and forensic evidence. Officers revealed that the group primarily targeted EE stores, where they used threats to compel employees to unlock secured stock rooms before escaping with valuable devices.
The suspects were linked to various crime scenes through DNA evidence, call data, and vehicle tracking. Surveillance efforts later caught them preparing for another operation, leading to their arrest on November 19, 2024, at an EE shop in Kilburn. Searches carried out at their residences uncovered stolen phones and other incriminating materials connecting them to the robberies.
All ten men were subsequently prosecuted and sentenced to a total of more than 55 years in prison. Among them were four Nigerian nationals: David Akintola, sentenced to six years and six months; Ayomide Olaribiro, sentenced to four years and six months; Olabiyi Obasa, sentenced to three years and six months; and David Okewole, sentenced to seven years and six months.
Police authorities described the sentencing as a major step toward dismantling violent retail crime networks operating across London.
