Men jailed for 'least impressive heist' ram-raid

Two men who launched a bungled ram-raid attack on a supermarket cash machine half an hour before its opening time have been jailed.

Dean Smith, 33, and Tjay O'Neil, 35, fled empty-handed after their attack on a Morrisons store in Carlisle at about 06:30 on 15 September.

They both admitted burglary with intent to steal and damaging property, while Smith also admitted dangerous driving and drink-driving.

Carlisle Crown Court heard the failed burglary was "perhaps a contender for the least impressive heist in criminal history". Smith was jailed for 33 months and O'Neil for two years.

Their actions caused substantial damage, with bricks and other debris strewn on the ground and the ATM badly damaged.

Trading at the store was temporarily brought to a standstill and the building was evacuated, the court heard.

CCTV showed a Volkswagen Crafter repeatedly strike the Kingstown Road building.

The court heard the vehicle caused enough damage to the ATM to break it open and the defendants, who were wearing face coverings, entered the building.

"Afterwards, the driver made further attempts to ram the ATM with the vehicle," prosecutor Emelia Boyle said.

"The second male then again attempted to gain access to the ATM on foot before signalling to the driver to ram it again.

"The defendants ultimately left the scene in the pick-up truck without obtaining any money."

At the time, convicted robber O'Neil was on licence and wearing a tag, data from the device placed him at the store at the relevant time.

The Crafter - insured to Smith - failed to stop for Police Scotland officers on the M6 southbound, towards the English border, at 10:37am.

Cumbria Police officers tried to stop the vehicle and positioned themselves on the motorway between junctions 45 and 44.

The Crafter accelerated, colliding with two other vehicles before crashing into a police vehicle and "repeatedly ramming it from behind".

After his arrest, driver Smith failed a breath test and was almost three times the legal drink-drive limit.

Mark Shepherd, mitigating, said: "This was not Brink's-Mat, Hatton Garden or the Millennium Star.

"It is perhaps a contender for the least impressive heist in criminal history.

"It was clearly ill-thought out and unsophisticated in the circumstances."

Andrew Gurney, for O'Neil, said his life had been blighted by alcohol and drug addition.

"He attempted to make a withdrawal," Gurney said. "He did literally hit a brick wall in relation to this case."

Adressing the defendants Judge Nicholas Barker said: "Your intention would have been to achieve the outcome which was to cause significant damage and make off with significant amounts of cash," he said.

Smith must also serve a two-year driving ban when released from custody.

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