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When and where the Johnson gang struck

Pa
Wednesday 06 August 2008 09:13 EDT

Here is a timeline of events leading up to the jailing of the Johnson gang.

10 June, 2003

* Burglary at Waddesdon Manor, a National Trust property and home of the Rothschild family near Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire. Snuff boxes worth around £5 million are stolen.

9 April, 2005

* The first raid at Woolley Park, the home of the former Lord Lieutenant of Berkshire, Sir Philip Wroughton, takes place in Chaddleworth, Berkshire.

29 July, 2005

* Three shops in Worcestershire are burgled in the early hours, with TVs, crystal, china and kitchenware worth a total of £140,000 stolen.

12 October, 2005

* The gang break in to Ombersley Court in Droitwich, Worcestershire, the home of Lord and Lady Sandys, stealing a carriage clock worth £1,000 before escaping when disturbed.

21 October, 2005

* The gang strike again, this time at Ramsbury Hill House in Marlborough, Wiltshire, taking £26,000 worth of property.

24 October, 2005

* The next target is Formula One motor racing tycoon Paddy McNally's mansion, Warneford Place in Sevenhampton, near Swindon, Wiltshire, where items worth £750,000 were snatched.

October 2005

* The police forces of Gloucestershire, Thames Valley, Warwickshire and West Mercia decide to pool resources in order to tackle the Johnson organised crime network in Operation Haul.

8 November, 2005

* A library window was smashed at Spetchley Park in Worcester but the thieves went away empty-handed.

10 November, 2005

* A valuable collection of Royal Derby china is stolen from a caravan park in Tenby Wells, Worcestershire.

16 November, 2005

* The next burglary was carried out on Stanton Harcourt Manor in Witney, Oxfordshire, where antiques, jewellery and porcelain worth up to £50,000 were taken. Albi Johnson breaks both legs jumping from a window to escape.

1 February, 2006

* Harry Hyams' huge mansion, Ramsbury Manor near Marlborough, Wiltshire, is raided. Antiques worth tens of millions of pounds are stolen during Britain's biggest ever domestic burglary.

25 March, 2006

* Police discover an underground bunker in a field near Stratford-upon- Avon where a third of the total haul from the Ramsbury Manor raid is discovered amongst straw in black bins.

25 April, 2006

* Woolley Park is raided for the second time and £50,000 worth of silverware, trophies and clocks are stolen.

May to June 2006

* High-value metals such as steel, titanium and various alloys worth a total of £360,000 are stolen in burglaries at six business premises in Berkshire, Warwickshire and Gloucestershire.

17 June, 2006

* Arrests made at attempted metal burglary at Bamfurlong Industrial Park, Staverton, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire.

10-12 October, 2006

* Police execute warrants and make a series of arrests over the country house burglaries in a massive operation.

September/October 2007

* Twelve people, including Chad Johnson and Daniel O'Loughlin, are jailed for a total of 38 years at Bristol Crown Court for conspiracy to burgle or steal metals.

December 2007

* The trial of Ricky Johnson, Chad Johnson and O'Loughlin over the Waddesdon Manor raid begins at Reading Crown Court but the jury is discharged after Judge Christopher Critchlow rules certain prosecution evidence cannot be included.

January/February 2008

* The five members of the Johnson gang - Richard "Chad" Johnson, Daniel O'Loughlin, Michael Nicholls, Albi Johnson and Ricky Johnson - are jailed for a total of 49 years for conspiracy to burgle country homes, following a trial at Reading Crown Court.

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