Police caught a gang of car-key burglars after bringing their crime spree to a decisive end. They have released video footage showing us pursuing one of their stolen cars in Birmingham after it failed to stop at 5am on 20 February 2020.
Khye Salmon had sped through red lights, mounted pavements and squeezed between dead end bollards. But their getaway was short-lived as the pursuing officer used all his advanced driver training to shunt the Seat Leon’s rear wing and pin it against a fence in Sheldon’s Church Lane.
It’s a controlled, approved tactical manoeuvre enabling us to bring reckless drivers to a stop if they pose a danger to other road users or pedestrians. Salmon, aged 20, and 21-year-old passenger Callum Rivers were arrested at the scene; we found the Leon was stolen the previous day from an address in Leamington Spa.
Detectives found the pair were involved in at least 17 burglaries at homes and shops dating back to 8 September 2019 when a Skoda Octavia and Ford Fiesta ST were stolen from a home in Haslucks Green Road, Shirley. Fellow thief Anthony Ferrie, aged 26, accompanied them to commit some of their earlier offences.
The gang went on to force entry to more homes in Redditch, Stechford, Sutton Coldfield and Shirley before targeting several shops. In total they made off with vehicles valued at up to £250,000 plus thousands of pounds worth of cigarettes and takings from shops. They’ve all now been convicted of burglary conspiracy. Salmon and Rivers have been jailed; Ferrie is awaiting sentence.
