Five men in their teens and twenties have been jailed for a car theft heist totalling nearly £1 million after bragging about their crimes online. The men, thought to have been members of a car theft gang, stole luxury SUVs, cars, motorcycles and motorhomes in a crime spree across Coventry that totalled 47 offences. Jason O’Farrell, 20, Tyrone Henn, 23, Deacon Cumberbatch, 19, and Kian O’Shea, 19, and Keegan Judge, 18, were convicted for car theft earlier this month.
An investigation by West Midlands Police found the men had been involved in an operation of stealing and selling on vehicles in the city between 2022 and 2023. Officers trawled through hours of social media footage and pages of messages to piece together the identities of those involved in the operation – with videos of the crimes posted on social media playing a crucial part in the eventual convictions.
Messages sent from Henn to his fellow offenders showed him complaining about the low share of the £2,000 profit he got from splitting it five ways.
Digital exchanges also revealed that the men had contacted car theft victims, offering to return their vehicles at a price.
All five were arrested last year, with O’Farrell, O’Shea and Judge pleading guilty on the second day of their trial. Cumberbatch originally pleaded not guilty before changing his plea and Henn also pleaded not guilty but was convicted last month.
Henn, 23, was jailed for 10 years and six months with a 12-year diriving ban, while O’Farrell was jailed for 10 years and five months, with a 14-year driving ban.
Cumberbatch was sentenced to six years and nine months behind bars, with a 10-year driving ban and O’Shea was jailed for three years and nine months, with an eight-year driving ban.
Judge, 18, who was only named by police after a court order restricting his identification was lifted, was similarly put behind bars for four years and five months, with a nine year driving ban.
Chief Superintendent Paul Drover described the five men as “among the most wanted offenders in Coventry” who had been “responsible for a staggering amount of offences”.
Only 24 of the vehicles they stole have so far been recovered.
CS Drover said: “The thefts, burglaries and car-jackings this group carried out had a devastating impact on the victims, not just financially, but mentally.
“During the investigation we really saw how brazen they all were and their casual attitude towards their offending. Taking these five prolific offenders off the streets will send out a strong message about how seriously we take vehicle crime.”