A pair of thieves were caught on camera sprinting out of a jewellery store carrying an 18-carat gold and diamond ring then launching a high-speed chase with police.
Shabir Patel, 39, and Khaqan Raja, 36, entered a shop in Essex and pretended to look at jewels on a counter, before stealing a ring worth around £60,000.
The pair tried to escape in a Jaguar getaway car, which was waiting in the carpark outside, by driving along the A23 at speeds of up to 120mph.
Despite swapping registration plates and driving nearly 300 miles away from their homes in Lancashire, the pair were eventually caught after officers were tipped off by a member of the public.
CCTV footage showed the crooks entering the store, where they spent less than 10 minutes asking to look at three high-value items.
Shabir Patel, 39, from Blackburn, admitted guilty to the theft of a gold platinum and diamond ring valued between £50,000 and £100,000 and was sentenced to a year in prison
Khaqan Raja, 36, from Blackburn, Lancashire was jailed for two years and four months after admitting to driving while disqualified and theft of a gold platinum and diamond ring valued between £50,000 and £100,000
The pair entered a shop in Essex and pretended to look at jewels on a counter, before stealing a ring worth around £60,000
In the clip, Raja pretended to take a phone call and leave, before Patel snatched the valuable ring and ran for the door.
While trying to catch the thieves, police were tipped off by a member of the public who spotted two vehicles travelling together switching registration plates.
The Jaguar was spotted racing along the A23 towards Crawley, West Sussex, at speeds of up to 120mph.
Armed officers tracked the two vehicles down in Lancashire and body cam footage showed officers bringing it to a stop on the M23 north of Blackburn and they were arrested.
Raja pretended to take a phone call and leave, before Patel snatched the valuable ring and made a run for it
CCTV footage showed the crooks entering the store, where they spent less than 10 minutes asking to look at three high-value items before they attempted to steal the valuable ring
The pair tried to escape in Jaguar getaway car, which was waiting in the carpark outside, by driving along the A23 at speeds of up to 120mph
Police were tipped off by a member of the public who spotted two vehicles travelling together switching registration plates
A Volkswagon Bora was also stopped on the M25 heading north towards London.
Both men travelled around 300 miles from Lancashire to carry out the theft in Eastbourne, East Sussex, on the South Coast.
At Lewes Crown Court on April 26, Raja, from Blackburn, Lancashire was jailed for two years and four months after admitting to driving while disqualified and theft of a gold platinum and diamond ring valued between £50,000 and £100,000.
His accomplice Patel, also from Blackburn, admitted to the same theft offence and was sentenced to a year in prison.
Investigating officer for Sussex Police, Detective Constable Ciara Richardson said: ‘Khaqan and Patel thought they could get away with stealing a high value ring from Sussex.
‘But thanks to information reported by the public and the fast response by officers, we were able to stop them.
‘With the weight of evidence they had no choice but to plead guilty.’
Superintendent Rachel Glenton, of Sussex and Surrey Police’s head of roads policing, added: ‘At one stage a vehicle was seen reaching speeds in excess of 120mph, which put the safety of other road users at high risk.’
DailyMail
