Last week 34yearold lee wenham was jailed for nine years for his part in organising the illfated diamond robbery at the millennium dome. In november 2000, the millennium dome, that much maligned london docklands white elephant that has cost its fair share of political scalps, was once again thrown into the glare of the media spotlight, when a smashandgrab robbery, worthy of the. Jun 27, 2000 why londons millennium dome has been a disaster by paul mitchell 27 june 2000 londons millennium dome, first proposed by john majors conservative government, was supposed to unite the. The gang had then planned to escape via the thames in a speedboat. Aug 08, 2014 betson, 52, from folkestone, was one of several men jailed over the attempted. Police have foiled a diamond heist at the millennium dome which detectives say would have been the worlds biggest robbery. The dome raiders planned to go down in history as the robbers who would pull off the biggest and most audacious robbery of the millennium. How scotland yard foiled the greatest robbery of all time.
Four men who battered their way into the millennium dome in a jcb excavator and attempted to snatch diamonds worth. It was built largely within the former millennium dome, a large dome shaped canopy built to house an exhibition celebrating the turn of the third millennium. All things considered for november 7, 2000 hear the all things considered program for november 7, 2000. The millennium dome raid was an attempted robbery of the millennium dome s diamond exhibition in greenwich, south east london occurring on 7 november 2000. But instead of escaping with the 203 carat millennium star one of the most valuable stones ever cut and 11 other priceless blue diamonds. Diamond geezers the inside story of the crime of the millennium isbn 1843171228 written by kris hollington, published by michael omara books ltd. Streaming the great dome robbery online hajar slew. The gang had then planned to escape via the thames in a. The movie potential for the story surrounding the events that made up the millennium dome heist was quickly recognised.
Jan 01, 2008 the giant diamond robbery is a novel about a mouse who grandfather made him be his partner for a golf tournament. The problem for them was that the authorities were monitoring them from the beginning to the moment they actually attempted to carry out their plans. Rather than just explaining about the heist, it provided a lot of background information about the location, the security of millenium dome, the different players and interviews with other people both from law enforcement and from the criminal fraternity. Watch them now see more ideas about documentaries, crime and the great train robbery. Dome chairman david james is told by police that there could be a raid and that there are certain risk days when it may happen. Book diamond geezers andrew lownie literary agency. Apr 17, 2015 for the next instalment of our series on the biggest robberies of all time, we will be looking at the millennium dome raid, including the haul the robbers expected to get and how the metropolitan police service successfully foiled the attempt. They thought they could pull off the biggest and most audacious robbery in history grabbing diamonds worth. The gang had figured out an ingenious way to breach the diamond.
Located on the greenwich peninsula in south east london, england, the exhibition was. The millennium dome was a natural fit and aeg made the most of the fact that the british government was a distressed seller. He was convicted of robbery at maidstone crown court and sentenced to two years and three months at a young offenders institution. The greatest robbery millennium dome robbery youtube. Nov 08, 2000 twelve men equipped with a bulldozer, a powerboat and as much audacity as any criminals since the great train robbery almost 40 years ago raided the millennium dome yesterday hoping to pull off. British mysteries and true crime the millennium dome heist. It ended up getting the land for free in return for agreeing to pay 15%. The robbers planned a massive shootout with police and a speedboat get away. How police foiled the domes robbery of the millennium. It is the ninth largest building in the world by usable volume. Kent police described the botched robbery in swanley as an attempted multi. It was initiated to house an exhibition for the approach of the 21st century and the 3rd millennium ce the official start of which was january 1, 2001. The millennium dome, also referred to simply as the dome, is the original name of a large dome shaped building, originally used to house the millennium experience, a major exhibition celebrating the beginning of the third millennium. The robbers had left behind a lorry that had been rigged with a giant spike as a homemade battering ram.
But a remarkable police operation caught the gang redhanded before the biggest robbery ever, it was claimed. The central structure is the largest dome in the world, with nearly. Located on the greenwich peninsula in south east london, england, the. Dome robber raymond betson jailed over bungled raid bbc news. The metropolitan police flying squad sealed off the south east london attraction as an armed gang attempted to steal 12 diamonds on display there including the priceless millennium star.
Feb 18, 2002 four men have been found guilty of conspiring to rob. The robbery of the millennium also involved the raiders crashing into the dome. Biggest robberies of all time the millennium dome raid. An old fashioned smashandgrab at a diamond exhibition. During the year 2000, da beers put on a diamond exhibition which was held in the millennium dome, now the o2 arena. Twelve men equipped with a bulldozer, a powerboat and as much audacity as any criminals since the great train robbery almost 40 years ago raided the millennium dome yesterday hoping to pull off. Drama that tells the true story of a gang of robbers who planned to steal the worlds largest diamond from the millennium dome where it is on show, unaware that they have been under police surveillance ever since they started planning the robbery. An audacious attempt by a gang of thieves to bulldoze their way into the dome and steal pound200million of diamonds would have been the robbery of the millennium, the old bailey heard today. The millennium dome raid was an attempted robbery of the millennium domes diamond. Diamond geezers the inside story of the crime of the millennium isbn 1843171228 written by kris hollington, published by michael omara books ltd, and dome raiders how scotland yard foiled the greatest robbery of all time isbn. Aah the millennium dome, a term some younger readers will not recognise but most will remember as a fairly hefty cockup from the government 16 years ago. Millennium dome raid wikimili, the best wikipedia reader. Millennium dome heist blue diamond to go under the hammer for.
You dont mess with the wenhams uk news the guardian. The millennium dome raid was an attempted robbery of the millennium domes diamond exhibition in greenwich, south east london occurring on 7 november 2000. Diamond robbers planned to use stink bombs the independent. Despite the significance of armed robbery in the criminal justice system, the media and in the public mind there has been little systematic research or writing on the subject beyond the popular accounts. The millennium star, a one off diamond and a set of rare blue gems on show at the attraction became the target of a highly dangerous gang of thieves. A the four robbers drove a bulldozer very fast, and they crashed with the building. As geronimo, the mouse, was playing the most weird things happened as if someone was cheating. Jul 9, 2016 free documentaries about famous theft and robbery cases, the gangs committing these crimes and much more. They were carrying a nail gun, ammonia, smoke grenades and sledgehammers and planned to escape in a speedboat. In 2000, a gang of villains from the south east of england hatched an audacious plan to steal the worlds largest perfect diamond from the millenium dome in broad daylight and make their getaway by speedboat.
Millennium dome building, greenwich, london, united kingdom. The millennium dome raid is one of the more daring attempts at stealing valuable diamonds by a local group, but did they get away with the robbery of over 350 million pounds of diamonds. How scotland yard foiled the greatest robbery of all time, a book by detective superintendent jon shatford and william doyle, details the raid. Worlds greatest robbery documentary the bank of america robbery crime documentary 2015. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders.
The iron wall documentary exposes this phenomenon and follows the timeline, size, population of the settlements, and its impact on the peace process. Judge rinders crime stories the swindon serial killer christopher helliwell. Crime journalist kris hollington wrote a book called diamond geezers isbn 1843171228 about the attempted theft. Dome raiders how scotland yard foiled the greatest robbery of all time book. Dome raiders how scotland yard foiled the greatest robbery of. To see what your friends thought of this book, please sign up.
Portrayed in court as an unintelligent man with an iq of. They were carrying a nail gun, ammonia, smoke grenades and sledgehammers and planned to escape in. Factual drama about the attempted robbery of the worlds most expensive diamond from the millenium dome in london and how the attempt. This book is very well put together, charting two attacks on security vans and whether or not the teams involved in those attacks were involved in the dome robbery is purely speculative to the collation of evidence, over a long period of time which ultimately resulted in the arrest of a very determined gang of criminals. Someone was suspected to rob the trophey with the giant diamond. A fifth man was cleared of the robbery charge but found guilty of conspiracy to steal by a. F the next day, the robbers went near the millenium dome in a powerboat on the river thames. How scotland yard foiled the greatest robbery of all time new ed by shatford, jon isbn. In november 2000, the millennium dome, that much maligned london docklands white elephant that has cost its fair share of political scalps, was once again thrown into the glare of the media spotlight, when a smashandgrab robbery, worthy of the best james bond plot, was foiled by london police. The most insane diamond heist the millennium dome diamond. The worlds toughest prisons colony 100, kharkiv, ukraine prison documentary duration. The son of millennium dome gems raid mastermind ray betson beat up and robbed a cabbie. United kingdom production company, working title, are developing a project called the rip, which will use the events as a focus, and brad pitt is also rumoured to have expressed an interest in fronting a film about the heist. Landmarks include the dome also known by the current corporate logo the o 2 and previously the millennium dome and the southern end of the blackwall tunnel, but the.
The great dome robbery is a 2002 crime drama film directed by gabriel range, based on the actual millennium dome raid of 2000. This film also touches on the latest project to make the settlements a permanent fact on the ground the wall that israel is building in the west bank and its impact on the palestinians peoples. The greatest robbery millennium dome robbery documentary. Millennium dome wikimili, the best wikipedia reader. Nov 07, 2000 the millennium dome raid was an attempted robbery of the millennium dome s diamond exhibition in greenwich, south east london occurring on 7 november 2000. With craig fairbrass, george innes, terry bird, gerard monaco. Convicted robber raymond betson jailed for millennium dome. These would be robbers planned to raid the millennium dome to steal a 203carat diamond known as the millennium star. Firing machine guns, they robbed the carltons jewellery store just as it was being closed. The armed gang accused of attempting the worlds biggest diamond robbery at the millennium dome planned to use stink bombs to drive away visitors and staff, the old bailey was told. How scotland yard foiled the greatest robbery of all time new ed by jon shatford isbn. How scotland yard foiled the greatest robbery of all time first edition, first impression by shatford, jon isbn.
In both the usa and the uk there remains a large gap in the literature on the subject, which this book aims to fill. Feb 19, 2002 four men who battered their way into the millennium dome in a jcb excavator and attempted to snatch diamonds worth. Twelve men equipped with a bulldozer, a powerboat and as much audacity as any criminals since the great train robbery almost 40 years ago raided the millennium dome yesterday hoping to pull off one of the most daring robberies the country has seen. The millennium dome, also referred to simply as the dome, is the original name of a large dome shaped building originally used to house the millennium experience, a major exhibition celebrating the beginning of the third millennium. Louis betson dragged abdul majidi from the taxi and screamed. There was an attempt on 7 november 2000 to steal the collection see millennium dome raid, but the metropolitan police discovered the plot and arrested the robbers before their escape. Nov 07, 2000 police have foiled a diamond heist at the millennium dome which detectives say would have been the worlds biggest robbery. Diamond geezers the inside story of the crime of the millennium isbn 1843171228 written by kris hollington, published by michael omara books ltd, and dome raiders how scotland yard foiled the greatest robbery of all time isbn 1852271949 written by jon shatford and william doyle, published by virgin books. Millennium dome, official name the o2, massive construction project and tourist attraction in greenwich, london, england. This book is included with kindle unlimited membership. One of the most famous articles being exhibited was the famous millennium star. Son of millennium dome gem raider jailed for beating up.