The police reported that the burglary, which occurred on 5 February, caused an estimated £25,000 worth of damage to the business premises in Island Road, Hersden. Lights, CCTV cameras, a window and other items were damaged.
Kent Police said its officers arrested the three men involved in the raid with assistance from a National Police Air Service helicopter.
Sentenced
According to the report, the three men were sentenced at Canterbury Crown Court on Friday 6 May 2022, having admitted burglary at a previous hearing.
Marih Ilihca, 39, Costel Coscodaru, 25, and Mihai Florin, 19, have now each been sentenced to two years and seven months’ imprisonment.
The police were reportedly called at 9.40pm on the evening of the offences after a security guard received a notification that an alarm had gone off at the premises in Hersden, and checked CCTV to see people inside the building.
Footage from a National Police Air Service helicopter shows the five offenders running from the scene before officers are directed to where two were hiding.
Kent Police said Coscodaru and Ilihca were arrested in Island Road and Florin was arrested in Westbere.
Daytime enquiries at the site showed a hole had been knocked through the wall, CCTV and lights had been damaged and three large bags of scrap copper had been moved to outside the broken security fence, the report stated.
The police did not release details regarding the owner of the warehouse.
Praise
Detective Constable Rebecca Keeler, Kent Police’s investigating officer, said: ”I would like to praise the work of officers who attended on the night and, with the help of a police helicopter, tracked down the three men who are now starting prison sentences.
“The case shows the importance to companies of having good quality CCTV and security procedures in place and I would encourage other firms to review their security arrangements to reduce the risk of being burgled.”
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