Since this is the Fifth of November, and Brits and Muslims all over the world will be setting things on fire, I was going to post something about the Gunpowder Plot, but I accidentally ran across this article instead. It’s far more like something we can all relate to.

I don’t know why I’ve never heard of this. Its probably Trump’s fault, obstructing history.

British Mysteries and True Crime – The Millennium Dome Heist
anglotopia.net / October 29, 2019 / John Rabon

One of the most daring raids of the 21st Century (and also one of the first major crimes in England of the new millennium), the Millennium Dome Heist was an attempt to steal diamonds from the De Beers exhibition being held at the dome.  Reading like something out of a movie, the group of mainly older gangsters very nearly made off with £350 million in diamonds, which would have been one of the biggest robberies in history had it succeeded.  Follow below to know more about one of Britain’s most daring capers.

In summer of 2000, the Metropolitan Police Flying Squad

Stop snickering, all of you. It’s a real name.

got a tip-off on an attempted armed robbery.  They reported to the scene to find the aftermath of a failed attempt to rob an armored car.  The robbers had left behind a lorry that had been rigged with a giant spike as a homemade battering ram.

+1 for the gang.

The would-be thieves had been foiled by a disgruntled man who took the keys out of their lorry because they’d blocked him in from leaving the car park.  They couldn’t use the ram, burned the vehicle,

-1

and made off in a boat on the river. 

+1

The Flying Squad recognized the meticulousness of the planning

!!!!!!!!!!!

and made notes about the getaway to figure out where that gang might try again.

“APB to all police departments on this island and those on the Thames and other major rivers: they have a boat.

“So, you know, be on the lookout around waterways.”

The gang was more successful on their next attempt in Kent, and though foiled, the use of a lorry-welded spike and river-based getaway gave the police even more clues about the gang. 

“P.S.: They have at least two spikes and one welder!”

An officer in Kent recognized the lorry used

-1

and tied it to vehicles being stored at Tom Farm.

-1 

Met and Kent Police set up a joint surveillance operation and identified several well-known criminals hanging around the farm. 

Minus several points.

Raymond Betson, Lee Wenham, Terry Millman, and William Cockram were all quickly recognized by the police along with several vehicles that they recognized as being linked to the past robberies. 

Minus several more points for the vehicles.

However, the cops could only guess at where the next target would be.

Harry “Snapper” Organs was called in . . .

It wasn’t until Wenham had purchased a family ticket for the Millennium Dome that the Flying Squad had an idea where the gang might hit.

-1

One Detective Inspector suggested the criminals could be after the Millennium Star diamond that was on display at the dome and it fit right in with the Met’s theories about the gang’s plans.  Squad members infiltrated the dome’s CCTV under the guise of looking for drug dealers. 

Um . . . what?

Cameras spotted Wenham looking for access points, and undercover cops filmed him visiting the diamond exhibit.  With pieces all in place, the Flying Squad started preparing their response to the imminent caper.

♫

♫

♫

♫

Calling their response “Operation Magician”, the Met prepared themselves to catch the gang in the act.  Police had thought the gang might mirror their prior attacks and strike as the diamonds were being moved, but an attempted sting operation during this event resulted in no action from the gang. 

Later, the undercover officer at the dome spotted Betson and Cockram at the Millennium Dome and reported it to his

or her

superiors. 

— if she or he had any.

The new intelligence let the Flying Squad know that the crime was going to take place at the Dome itself and they prepared accordingly.

After an aborted attempt by the gang (stopped due to the gang’s boat not working),

-1

the real raid came on November 7.  Observation of the gang’s habits and their continued visits helped the police to figure out that they were likely to strike when the River Thames was at high tide.  Roughly 100 officers were at the dome undercover or the surrounding area on a round-the-clock schedule.  Surveillance observed gang members moving a JCB earth digger towards the Millennium Dome in the early morning hours before it breached the dome’s fencing and a sidewall of the dome. 

-1

Four of the gang members exited the JCB throwing smoke bombs and using sledgehammers and nail guns to pierce the security glass.

It was at this point that the Flying Squad moved en masse, surrounding the robbers and seizing the speed boat they had planned to use for their getaway.  It took less than a minute for police to foil the crime with no casualties from the cops or the criminals.  Millman was arrested shortly afterwards as he waited for the speedboat and Wenham was arrested at Tom Farm. 

The trial took place a year later, and six out of the seven gang members were convicted (with Millman having died of cancer prior to the trial). 

Five of them were sentenced to 15 to 18 years, with the speedboat driver getting five years for conspiracy to commit robbery. 

And now, the punchline:

Ironically, De Beers had already replaced the diamond with a fake, so had the gang even succeeded in the biggest robbery of the time, they would have come away with nothing.