Irishman due to appear in court over London jewellery raid

One Irish man and seven others will appear in court in England later, charged with conspiracy to burgle in connection with the Hatton Garden jewellery raid in London.

A 48-year-old man, originally from Dublin, was arrested at his London home on Tuesday suspected as being involved in the break-in over the Easter weekend.

All eight have been remanded in custody to appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court today. A ninth man has been bailed pending further inquiries.

The raid over the Easter weekend saw thieves break into the vault at Hatton Garden Safe Deposit Company in London’s jewellery quarter.

Officers believe they entered the building, which houses a number of businesses, through a communal entrance before disabling the lift so they could climb down the lift shaft to the basement.

It is thought that they then forced open shutter doors and used a drill to bore a hole 20in deep, 10in high and 18in into the vault wall.

Once inside, the thieves ransacked 72 safety deposit boxes, taking millions of pounds worth of goods.

After facing criticism for the way the incident was handled, the Met Police apologised for deeming that a call from a security firm about an intruder alert shortly after midnight on Good Friday did not require a response.

A more detailed investigation into the defeat of the alarm system is continuing and Scotland Yard says it will share any lessons learnt.