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A gang carried out a spate of car thefts at West Midlands train stations in a “sophisticated and professional” campaign that lasted five months. They specifically targeted Ford Fiestas using specialized equipment to break into the vehicles.

The gang targeted Ford Fiestas registered between 2012 and 2017 between June and November 2022 with a combined value of more than £366,000. Matthew Cullen, a prosecutor at Birmingham Crown Court, said 56 cars were stolen and there were three other attempted thefts.

Many of the vehicles had never been recovered. He said that sometimes gang members hid their identity by wearing face masks. Two were identified through CCTV and mobile phone tracking.

READ MORE: Man charged with 62 car thefts at Birmingham and Sandwell train stations

On one occasion, a bank card was stolen from a car and used to obtain £580 worth of goods. Selected stations included Kings Norton, Selly Oak, Coleshill, Rowley Regis, The Hawthorns, and Smethwick.

Kain Guest-Scott was involved in all the robberies and attempted robberies, while Theon Lynch was involved in 31 crimes. When police arrested Guest-Scott on November 4, they found specialized equipment at his home, including blank key fobs, auto locksmith devices, a turbo decoder and a diagnostic jammer.

Guest Scott, 22, of Bunbury Road, Northfield, who had previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy to steal, theft of a bank card and fraud, was jailed for four years and one month. Lynch, 21, of Horsecroft Drive, West Bromwich, was sentenced to three years after admitting to the same charges. Handing down the sentence, Judge Peter Carr said: “There is a huge demand for vehicles and their parts.

“It’s no surprise that crimes like these are on the rise. They were planned, sophisticated and professional crimes, a campaign that lasted five months.”

Sally Cairns. for Guest-Scott, she said she suffered from mental health issues, including ADHD, and fell into debt due to her gambling addiction. She said: “She got into auto theft as a way to pay off a debt that had become untenable.”

She said that before that he had had trouble finding a job, but had landed a job with Jaguar Land Rover. Rob Cowley said he had done two years of an architecture degree in Wolverhampton and had taken a gap year.

He said that he was a bright young man, well respected, and that he had had financial problems.

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