Hatton Garden gang ordered to pay back £27.5 million

Almost three years after Brian Reader, 78, John ‘Kenny’ Collins, 77,  Terry Perkins, 69, and Daniel Jones, 63 drilled a hole into the wall of a Hatton Garden vault and took off with 73 boxes of stolen cash, gold and gems  a judge has ruled they must find a way of paying back £27.5 million in total.

Hatton Garden ringleaders John "Kenny" Collins, Danny Jones, Terry Perkins, 67 and Brian Reader ordered to pay back £27.5 million (Credit: Metropolitan Police)

The exact value of the goods stolen in 2015 has never been revealed though around £4 million worth of jewels has been found in property raids and in a memorial plot at Edmonton cemetary in north London. Still to be recovered is a large amount of cash, a significant number of loose precious stones, bullion, including gold and platinum bars, ingots and coins.

Judge Christopher Kinch QC told the gang at Woolwich Crown Court that a specialist financial investigation by the Met's criminal finance team and the Flying Squad had been working to identify's the gang member's assets which amounted to properties and land in the UK and overseas.

Collins was ordered to pay back £7,686,039, after the team discovered assets in UK and abroad while Jones will have to pay £6,649,827 though it is likely he will have to have his sentence increased by seven years since he has no assets apart from cash in the bank.

Jewels recovered from Hatton Garden heist (Credit: Metropolitan Police)

Perkins, who is chronically ill with heart failure must pay £6,526,571 and Reader £6,644,951. All will be forced to serve the extra time due to lack of funds and assets, their barristers claim, even though they were believed to have pocketed £13.7 million between them.

Judge Kinch said: "A number of these defendants are not only of a certain age but have in some cases serious health problems. 

"But as a matter of principle and policy it is very difficult to endorse any approach that there is a particular treatment for someone who chooses to go out and commit offences at the advanced stage of their lives that some of these defendants were." 

MPS Detective Chief Inspector Mark Bedford added: “This thorough investigation in partnership with the Crown Prosecution Service has resulted in these Proceeds of Crime orders which will ensure the defendants are prevented from enjoying any financial benefit from this audacious burglary and demonstrates the Met’s determination to ensure that crime does not pay."