Corby chicken shop CCTV helped bring down gang behind burglary which saw man stabbed

CCTV from a Corby chicken shop helped detectives nail a violent gang behind a drug-related burglary which saw a man stabbed.

Five people – including two from Corby – are starting prison terms after the brutal incident in Nottingham which left the victim with life-changing injuries.

Now police have lifted the lid on their work which unlocked the case and brought the gang to justice.

The 19-year-old victim suffered a 6cm wound to his neck and needed life-saving surgery after a gang burst into his home in Keys Close, Bulwell, and attacked him on the night of February 1, 2023.

His life was only saved by several emergency surgeries and blood transfusions but he was left with irreparable life-changing injuries.

Meticulous mobile phone work, use of cell site and GPS location data to map the offenders’ movements, extensive checks of CCTV footage and automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) cameras, fast-track forensic work, use of drones and the work of response officers at the scene were all key parts of the massively complex police investigation to track down the knifemen.

A pivotal moment saw a detective crack one of the masked attackers’ phones by zooming in on CCTV footage as 24-year-old Jaekwon Marks entered the passcode while in an un-named chicken restaurant in Corby.

Another key piece of evidence was gathered when a drone captured footage of 21-year-old Andre Saunders-Johnson throwing a mobile phone out of a bedroom window into a neighbouring garden when officers executed a warrant at an address in Birmingham.

Detective Inspector Jon Kerry of Nottinghamshire Police, who led the investigation, said: “This case was a proper old-fashioned whodunnit right from the outset. Our investigation involved a monumental one-team approach to track down and catch those responsible.

“Drone team footage gave us a bird’s eye view of the offence location and following tenacious work by officers at the scene, we quickly found two knives which had been dumped in a bin next to an underpass about 150 yards away.

“No suspects were located but we managed to get the knives to the lab the next day.

"Our first breakthrough came a few days later when we got a DNA match for one of the offenders – 20-year-old Kyarnie Thompson – whose DNA was found on the sheath of one of the knives. A warrant was obtained, and Thompson was arrested at his home address in Nottingham.”

While Thompson did not participate in the attack, it was revealed the ‘seeds’ of the burglary plot came from him due to a ‘drug debt he couldn’t meet’. He gave the victim’s address to the others and phone data also linked him to the crime.

Det Insp Kerry added: “After checking CCTV we knew a Peugeot car was involved in the incident. Images showed it had a rear light which was not working.

"Detective Constable Chris Bostock noticed the car had an unusual sticker in its window and he went through hundreds if not thousands of rear images of cars to try and identify the vehicle.

“Further ANPR inquiries led to the car being identified and it was subsequently found abandoned in Cornwall.”

After mobile phone and intelligence work the net was soon closing on the other knifemen – Jaekwon Marks and 25-year-old Jawon Thomas.

They were detained after running from a vehicle which had been stopped by police in Kettering on February 11, 2023. DNA evidence found on one of the knives linked Thomas to the crime and indicated he had been in contact with the weapon.

Further investigative work, including analysis of telephone evidence, vehicle movements and CCTV evidence, connected two women to the Keys Close incident – 25-year-old Mollie Croft and 41-year-old Lucy Hefford.

Hefford transported the main offenders to and from the scene of the crime. Phone data also showed she had been in contact with the attackers.

Croft booked a taxi for Thomas and Marks to take them to Kettering following the stabbing. She also deleted footage from a CCTV system at her home in Charlock Close, Top Valley, Nottingham, which had been used by the offenders as a meeting point before and after the knife attack.

At Nottingham Crown Court on April 12 Marks, of Church Green, Handsworth Wood, Birmingham, Thomas, formerly of Eastbrook, Corby, and Saunders-Johnson, formerly of Wensleydale Road, Birmingham, were each jailed for 10 years and nine months after pleading guilty to wounding with intent and conspiracy to commit aggravated burglary.

Thompson, formerly of Cedar Road, Hyson Green, was locked up for seven years and two months after pleading guilty to conspiracy to commit aggravated burglary.

Hefford, formerly of Church Walk, Corby, was jailed for four-and-a-half years after pleading guilty to conspiracy to commit aggravated burglary.

Croft was handed an 18-month prison sentence, suspended for two years, after pleading guilty to assisting an offender.