Two robbers jailed after attack on security van in Medway
Two robbers have been jailed after a security van driver was attacked while delivering money to a bank in Medway. Warren Young, 36, of Cavendish Avenue, Gillingham, and his getaway driver Samnit Sidhu, 24, of Cromwell Road in Grays, Essex, committed the offence in High Street, Rainham, on the morning of Wednesday 25 September 2019. Although their faces were not seen in CCTV footage of the incident, detectives from the Kent and Essex Serious Crime Directorate were able to prove their involvement by tracking the movements of their getaway vehicle and analysing data from their mobile phones. Both men pleaded guilty to robbery and were sentenced at Maidstone Crown Court on Thursday 21 November 2019. Young received a custodial sentence of four-and-a-half years while Sidhu, who also admitted possession of cocaine with intent to supply, possession of cannabis with intent to supply and possession of a CS spray, was jailed for five years and three months. Kent Police was notified of the robbery at 10.35am on the day in question after the victim, who was uninjured, told staff at the bank what had happened to him. He said he had just unloaded a cash box from the back of his secure van when he was approached by a man, later identified as being Young, who wrestled the box from him before escaping in a black Nissan Qashqai driven by Sidhu. Detectives were able to locate the vehicle through the use of automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) software and it was stopped in Cromwell Road, Grays, at about 7.20pm the same day. The car was being driven by Sidhu, who was arrested on suspicion of robbery. He was carrying a bag at the time, which was found to contain a number of packets of cocaine and herbal cannabis, a set of weighing scales and approximately £3,000 cash. A can of CS spray was also located in the pocket of the driver’s side door. Officers seized two mobile phones belonging to Sidhu, which contained information proving he had travelled to Rainham from Essex and was in the area of Rainham High Street when the robbery was committed. One of the phones also contained evidence that Sidhu and Young had sent several messages to one another both before and after the robbery. Young was stopped and arrested at 5.10pm the following day, and during a search of his home address officers located approximately £10,000 in cash inside a carrier bag in the basement. Investigating officer Detective Constable Mark Froome said: ‘Warren Young and Samnit Sidhu are the latest in a long line of criminals who helped themselves to property that did not belong to them and thought they could get away with it. Instead they were both arrested and charged within the space of less than two days. ‘This case is a fantastic example of how modern technology helps us to bring serious offenders to justice. Without the use of ANPR software and mobile phone analysis, it would have been much harder to prove that Young and Sidhu were guilty of their crimes. ‘Instead they were left with little choice but to admit their involvement and they will now serve a considerable amount of time behind bars as a result.’
