Bradford burglary gang who installed trackers on cars of takeaway owners jailed

A criminal gang who attached tracking devices to the cars of Chinese takeaway owners in order to burgle their homes have been jailed.

The three men ordered others to carry out raids on their victims while tracking their movements remotely.

Investigations by West Yorkshire Police began after a businessman from Tingley, near Wakefield, reported that his home had been broken into during the hour that he was out on 22 December 2020.

Every room of the house had been ransacked, including the loft, and cash in sterling, euros, dollars and Chinese currency was stolen.

The man told police two days earlier someone had been seen going under his vehicle outside the takeaway business. At the time he found nothing untoward.

But when the officer looked under the car, he found a small black box attached to the car’s rear axle with magnets, with a tracking device inside.

The device and the app used to access it were analysed and further trackers were also identified that had been used to target other victims.

Three suspects were identified and warrants were executed at their addresses in Bradford.

They were Andrew Lister, aged 26, of Churchfields, Bradford; Kameron Akram, aged 22, of Pelham Court, Bradford; and Nathan Stapleton, aged 27, of Howarth Avenue, Bradford.

A further tracker was found at Lister’s address and another was recovered at Akram’s home, along with drugs and cash.

Through detailed enquiries, detectives identified a conspiracy running from November 2020 to October 2021, involving the targeting of multiple victims.

All of the victims owned Chinese restaurants and takeaways. It is believed the offenders expected that cash from their businesses would be kept at their homes.

Police say other suspects were directed to commit the burglaries.

All three were jointly charged with conspiracy to commit burglary and pleaded guilty when they appeared at Leeds Crown Court in March. Akram also pleaded guilty to possession of cannabis with intent to supply in relation to the drugs found at his address.

Stapleton was jailed for seven years, Lister was sentenced to six years and seven months in prison, and Akram received four years and four months in prison.

Det Insp Vicky Vessey, who heads Leeds District Crime Team, said: "These offenders were involved in a criminal enterprise that was highly sophisticated and exploited relatively new technology to track their victims.

"While the high-tech tracking devices they used gave them the ability to identify the homes of those they targeted, they were also their downfall.

"Painstaking detective work, supported by the expertise of specialist digital media investigators, was able to build up a clear evidential picture that led us right to their doors.

"We recognise that criminals will exploit every means at their disposal to commit offences, including the use of technology, but this case illustrates how we are staying one step ahead with our own capability to investigate cyber-enabled crimes such as this."

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