13 sentenced over jewellery shop raids

The remaining members of one of Britain's biggest networks of armed robbery gangs have been jailed.

The 13 raiders were among 30 criminals sentenced for their roles in raids that netted watches and jewellery worth more than £3.5 million.

It follows the jailing of the other 17 members on Thursday.

The crooks were so prolific they undertook a robbery almost every fortnight for 16 months as they targeted shops across southern England.

Gangs of three or four men dressed in white overalls and balaclavas and used sledgehammers and axes to smash their way into jewellery shops. During some of the raids the thieves armed themselves with knives, a gun, a hammer, CS spray and a Taser stun gun.

Kingston Crown Court was told 34 raids were carried out across southern England, London, the West Country and East Anglia between January 2008 and May 2009.