Irishman among eight charged in Hatton Garden raid

Eight men are due to appear in court charged with conspiracy to burgle in connection with the Hatton Garden jewellery raid.

Detectives from the Metropolitan Police's Flying Squad have charged Terry Perkins, 67, Daniel Jones, 58, and Hugh Doyle, 48, all of Enfield, and William Lincoln, 59, of Bethnal Green, east London, and John Collins, 74, of Islington, north London.

Hugh Doyle is a plumber originally from Dublin.

Brian Reader, 76, and Paul Reader, 50, both of Dartford Road, Dartford, and Carl Wood, 58, of Elderbeck Close, Cheshunt, also face the same charge.

All eight have been remanded in custody to appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court today.

A ninth man has been bailed pending further inquiries.

The raid over the Easter weekend saw thieves break into the vault at Hatton Garden Safe Deposit Company in London’s jewellery quarter.

Officers believe they entered the building, which houses a number of businesses, through a communal entrance before disabling the lift so they could climb down the lift shaft to the basement.

It is thought that they then forced open shutter doors and used a drill to bore a hole 20in deep, 10in high and 18in into the vault wall.

Once inside, the thieves ransacked 72 safety deposit boxes, taking millions of pounds worth of goods.

After facing criticism for the way the incident was handled, the Met Police apologised for deeming that a call from a security firm about an intruder alert shortly after midnight on Good Friday did not require a response.

Detectives from the Flying Squad issued the apology after confirming that alarm response procedures had not been followed, but rejected the suggestion that they were bungling “Keystone Cops”.

Commander Peter Spindler said: "On this occasion, the systems and processes that we have in place with the alarm companies weren't followed and, as a result of that, officers did not attend the premises when, in fact, they probably should have done and for that I want to apologise."

A more detailed investigation into the defeat of the alarm system is continuing and Scotland Yard says it will share any lessons learnt.

PA