Shop E Store It sounds like a thriller plot, with the iPad thrown into a London river, Thames spent more than five years in the water before it was discovered, providing important evidence to convict three men from attempted murder.
One of the largest armed robbers in the world
Paul Allen was one of eight men convicted of participating in an armed robbery in a cash warehouse in 2006. The Security Depot was used by the Bank of England as a cash distribution centre for new bank notes, storing the old currency before it was destroyed.
The robbers stole £53 million ($68 million), but if they used a larger truck, their haul would have been even greater. The gang was forced to leave another £154 million ($199 million) because it would not fit into the truck they drove at the depot.
Allen was sentenced to 18 years in prison, but was released in 2016 after serving less than half of this time.
Museum Robbery and Attempts to Murder
Three years later, Allen was shot at his home, with six rounds passing through the kitchen window. He was left numb from his chest.
Three major criminals were later arrested in a series of unrelated robbery series. BBC News Reports including museum robbery.
Within seconds of passing through the main entrance, they crushed a glass casing that housed antiques from the 14th century Chinese Ming Dynasty. Three items were seized – a rare pomegranate vase. Dukai-style wine cups and porcelain bowls – combined with insurance value of £2.8 million.
They foolishly tried to sell one of these items at a public auction. The auction house notified police who had set up string operations to capture the robber. DNA evidence then linked them to Allen’s shooting five years ago, and a statement by one of the defendants showed that the getaway vehicle had temporarily stopped at a location near the Thames.
Unexpected discoveries on iPad
Police searched this section of the river and were hoping to find the firearms used in the shooting. Instead, they found an iPad.
When discovered by a police officer carrying a metal detector on a cold November morning last year, the iPad was fixed in mud that had been in the water for over five years.
Forensic was able to clean it up and open the SIM tray that contained the pink Vodafone SIM card.
The data recovered later provided terrible evidence of three men (Louis Ahern, Stewart Ahern and Daniel Kelly) who were also involved in the robbery of a Swiss museum a month ago.
SIM was also linked to a GPS tracker where criminals were obsessed with Allen’s car to track him down to his home. It is believed that the murder was attempted because the gang borrowed money from Allen.
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Image: shopestore collage of images from Met Police and Christian Palmer
