A Ming vase pilfered from a Swiss museum. Gunfire directed at a comedian’s residence in Woodford, located in east London. The theft of a high-end apartment in Sevenoaks, Kent.
These events, seemingly unrelated, were actually interconnected as components of a complex network of international organized crime that law enforcement unraveled following a comprehensive six-year investigation.
Crucial to this inquiry was the discovery of an iPad, uncovered beneath nearly an inch of sand along the River Thames, just downstream from the O2 Arena.
This finding was crucial to the case that ultimately resulted in the conviction of three individuals at the Old Bailey for the attempted assassination of one of Britain’s most infamous armed robbers.
The iPad, retrieved by a police officer wielding a metal detector on a chilly November morning last year, was encased in mud, having remained submerged for over five years.
Forensic teams managed to clean it and open the SIM tray, which still housed a pink Vodafone SIM card.
The call records extracted from the device provided incriminating evidence against three suspects – Louis Ahearne, Stewart Ahearne, and Daniel Kelly – who were also implicated in a burglary at a Swiss museum a month prior.
“I have pondered this often,” said Detective Chief Inspector Matthew Webb. “Were they simply making catastrophic mistakes, or were they so complacent that they assumed they would not be caught?”
The Ahearne brothers and Kelly first attracted police attention when gunfire disrupted a quiet summer evening in the upscale Woodford neighborhood on July 11, 2019.
Six bullets pierced the glass conservatory of a luxurious home rented by comedian Russell Kane for Paul Allen’s use.
One bullet severed Allen’s finger, while another penetrated his throat and lodged in his spinal cord, severely hindering his breathing and causing severe blood loss.
“He’s been shot!” shouted Allen’s partner, Jade Bovington, as she frantically dialed for an ambulance. Neighbors and a private security guard rushed to provide aid.
An eyewitness reported seeing an unidentified individual leap over a low wall, rush through some bushes, and jump into a getaway vehicle that sped away.
To this day, Allen relies on a wheelchair, paralyzed below his upper chest.
He is known for his role as one of the masterminds behind Britain’s largest armed robbery. In 2006, as part of a balaclava-clad gang armed with weapons, including an AK-47, he threatened employees at the Securitas depot in Tonbridge, Kent, stealing £53 million in Bank of England cash notes, leaving behind £154 million that wouldn’t fit into their vehicle.
Allen fled to Morocco shortly afterward but was captured in Rabat alongside friend and fellow robber Lee Murray, who is currently incarcerated in Tiflet. Extradited to the UK in January 2008, Allen received an 18-year sentence.
After serving time, he was released in 2016 and returned to south-east London before moving to Woodford with his partner and two young children due to a prior shooting incident in September 2018 that targeted him and his pregnant daughter at their Woolwich residence.
Ten months later, he faced another near-death experience when he was shot in his Woodford home.
Prosecutors contended that the Ahearnes and Kelly were equally involved in the conspiracy to kill Allen, which involved a rented car, surveillance, and unregistered pay-as-you-go mobile phones.
“This was an assassination attempt that was meticulously researched and planned by individuals well-acquainted with criminal activity,” claimed prosecutor Michael Shaw KC.
As police investigated how the trio tracked down Allen, they traced their criminal activities back into mainland Europe.
Just a month before the shooting, the Ahearnes and Kelly were seen outside the Museum of Far Eastern Art in Geneva, armed with sledgehammers, angle grinders, and crowbars.
Almost immediately after breaching the entrance, they smashed the glass display cases containing Ming Dynasty artifacts from the 14th century. The gang made off with three valuable items—a rare pomegranate vase, a doucai-style wine cup, and a porcelain bowl—with an insured value adding up to £2.8 million.
In their haste to escape, Stewart left traces of his DNA after scraping his stomach against the entrance’s hole. Additionally, he rented the getaway car, a Renault Koleos, from Avis at Geneva Airport. Louis was recorded on CCTV filming the museum’s interior and exterior just a day before the burglary.
Soon after returning to south-east London with the stolen artifacts, the trio attempted to sell the goods they had acquired illegally.
The brothers flew to Hong Kong with Kelly, attempting to auction one of the stolen items.
The auction house alerted police in London, allowing undercover officers to apprehend other gang members in a sting operation as two attempted to sell another stolen piece concealed in a JD Sports bag.
During a seven-week trial at the Old Bailey, prosecutors demonstrated that their international burglary endeavored to show that the Ahearnes and Kelly operated “at the top end” of criminal offenses.
Unbeknownst to the police, while tracing the stolen antiques, the trio left behind strikingly similar evidence linking them to the Woodford shooting.
In the aftermath of the gunfire, the crime scene in Woodford underwent a forensic investigation. Six shell casings from a Glock handgun were recovered, along with scuff marks on the garden fence indicating the direction from which the shots were fired.
DNA samples collected from the fence were primarily linked to Louis and Kelly.
Police combed through surveillance footage, identifying a silver-grey Renault Captur rented from Avis.
Records indicated it was leased by Stewart from a Dartford location just two days before the shooting and returned the following day.
Additional CCTV analysis revealed that the Renault stopped for gas at a Shell station on Shooters Hill Road, near Greenwich Park, just 90 minutes prior to the attack.
“They paused for petrol because Louis Ahearne was thirsty,” Shaw recounted in court.
“The issue with petrol stations is they have excellent CCTV,” he added.
Two days earlier, Stewart had driven Kelly and Louis in the same Renault Captur to Ide Hill Hall, a 16th-century mansion converted into luxury apartments in Sevenoaks, where they posed as police officers—complete with a blue flashing light on the Renault—gaining entry to the gated property and stealing high-end items.
They were later convicted at Maidstone Crown Court for both burglary and attempting to burglarize another apartment.
The following day, July 10, Stewart reportedly used the Renault to navigate various regions of east London, including Bethnal Green, Snaresbrook, and Woodford.
A thorough examination of traffic camera footage revealed the Renault trailing a silver Mercedes owned by the Allens.
Yet, detectives waited more than five years to discover how the trio had known Allen’s location.
In October 2024, just four months before the Old Bailey trial commenced and shortly after being extradited from Switzerland, Louis submitted a defense statement with a notable detail.
He mentioned that as they returned to Woolwich, the Renault made a stop at John Harrison Way. Louis expressed hope that CCTV from the area would reveal him “getting some air” while Kelly vanished towards the Thames.
Det Chief Insp Webb recollects, “We were aware that the vehicle had halted at John Harrison Way and that Kelly exited the vehicle—but beyond that, we had no insights. We did not know where he went or what transpired—only that it was John Harrison Way.”
“Immediately, we suspected that if someone wanted to dispose of something crucial, it might involve a firearm.”
Louis’s defense statement highlighted that specific stop, which ultimately led to the discovery of the iPad in the River Thames—much to Kelly’s displeasure, as he learned about it just before the trial.
On the second day of the trial, footage captured in a prison van showcased Kelly yelling, “How is the snitch life treating you?” at Louis.
Kelly and Stewart remained silent in the dock throughout the trial and chose not to testify, both citing safety concerns. Louis insinuated to the jury that it was Kelly who had fired the shots during the Woodford incident.
However, Det Chief Insp Webb asserted that the iPad was integral in piecing together the entire case.
“People were truly astonished and taken aback,” he recalled. “Det Insp Matthew Freeman called to say they’d located an iPad in the Thames.”
“I struggled to contain my excitement—what a magnificent piece of the puzzle!”
Call records indicated that both the iPad and a iPhone 6 belonging to Kelly had communicated with a select few contacts, including the Ahearne brothers.
Additionally, the SIM card was linked to GPS tracking devices discovered in a vehicle when Louis and Kelly were apprehended in August 2019.
Police then traced 59 purchases made on Amazon and eBay connected to Kelly and an associate, some of which included unregistered Nokia burner phones utilized for communication during the assassination plot.
The SIM card remained active until it disappeared from the network just before Allen was shot.
The post Thames Treasure: How a Long-Lost iPad Exposed a Deadly Art Heist Conspiracy first appeared on London.
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Author : London News
Publish date : 2025-03-25 08:10:00
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