Security driver staged £920k robbery and handcuffed himself to his van

A security van driver who staged a bogus £920,000 robbery by handcuffing himself to the steering wheel has been ordered to pay back just £100,000.

Andrew Measor, 53, claimed he had only managed to raise the alarm by dialling the number with his nose.

But he was caught bragging about faking his stress-related illness after the staged heist and boasted to friends he was 'milking it', Southwark Crown Court heard.

He has since been jailed for four years and 10 months but now faces having a further 14 months added to his sentence if he fails to pay back the £100,000 in three months.

Measor left the depot in Dagenham on December 30 2021 with £920,000 in bank notes and £14,660 in coins in his van, the court heard.

When the van arrived in Friary Lane, Ilford, Measor placed shopping bags full of cash in the vehicle's airlock.

A white Vauxhall Combo van pulled up and two men got out to collect the bags. Measor then drove his van to Oak Lane and handcuffed himself to the steering wheel.

Two hours later, Measor called the landline number of the Loomis depot at Dagenham.

He said he had been robbed at 5am when a man approached him with a gun and had said: 'I know everything that goes on, just do as I say and everything will be ok.'

Measor said he was handcuffed to the steering wheel of his van and had tried and failed to get passersby to help him.

But a jury saw through his lies and he was convicted of conspiracy to steal and conspiracy to pervert the course of justice after a trial in February last year. He was jailed for four years and 10 months.

Not a penny of the money has been recovered.

Stefanos Cantaris, 41, who was 'in charge and pulling the strings', admitted perverting the course of justice and was jailed for five years and four months.

He blew a fortune on designer watches and holidays around the globe.

Measor returned to court for a confiscation hearing after originally claiming he never saw a penny of the loot.

Luke Ponte, defending Measor, told the court: 'The key issue would be what his benefit was, as to whether he obtained the £920,000 jointly as has been accepted by Mr Cantaris.

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'Even though he was a key figure... I would suggest there were others ahead of Mr Measor whose role might involve a bigger share.'

Judge Dafna Spiro said Measor's agreed benefit was £100,000 and told him to pay that amount in three months or serve another 14 months jail in default.

Measor's money will be paid back to Loomis from two pensions in his name.

The judge told Cantaris the 'recoverable amount based on the summary of assets is £125,125'.

Cantaris must pay that amount in full by  March 16 2025 or serve another 18 months in prison in default.

Passing sentence last year Judge Spiro had told Measor: 'It was not a "tiger kidnap" or robbery as you told the police.

'It was a well-planned sophisticated and highly orchestrated event that you were planning, supervising and participating in.

'It was made to look like a robbery, but as the jury found you were both in this together on Mr Cantaris' instructions.'

'You were as I have been told "milking it" with your employers. The £930,000 has never been recovered.'

Judge Spiro told Cantaris: 'You were in charge and you pulled the strings.

'Police investigators have identified in your account trips to Dubai where you spent £3,099 and purchases of Rolex watches.'

Other exotic locations Cantaris had visited included Colombia, Morocco, Ibitha, Portugal and Albania.

Measor, of Loughton, Essex, denied but was convicted of conspiracy to steal and conspiracy to pervert the course of justice.

Cantaris, of Epping, Essex, admitted conspiracy to commit theft and was found guilty at trial of conspiracy to pervert the course of justice