Watch: ‘Sticky thugs’ burglary gang boasts about scale of crime in West Midlands

In the video released by West Midlands Police, the five-man gang is seen seizing metal, copper and other goods in raids in the Black Country, Staffordshire, Shropshire and Worcestershire.

They laugh and joke as they raid a warehouse, use a forklift to move a truck off the road, and even disguise themselves as they film themselves bragging about their crimes.

The shocking video was released by West Midlands Police. Adam Shakespeare, David Smith, Lee Fletcher, Royston Hallard and David Williams were sentenced to a total of nearly 30 years behind bars at Wolverhampton Crown Court on Monday.

They stole vehicles from companies and used others on cloned number plates to transport the stolen material back to the industrial unit on Watery Lane in Wolverhampton, where they are believed to have sold the metal to scrap dealers.

At one of the burglaries at Cashmore Metals in Walsall on January 1, 2023, they emerged with a trailer so overloaded with copper that it tipped over.

They stole £400,000 worth of metal from the firm, leaving behind a cheeky ‘Merry Christmas’ message and a crudely drawn image of male genitalia.

The thieves made great efforts to avoid being caught; The three gang members used 17 cell phones between them during their crime spree.

Many businesses were hit during the Christmas holidays, when the gang felt there was less risk of being disturbed.

They filmed some of the raids on their own mobile phones and referred to themselves as the ‘Sticky Bandits’ in one clip; Referring to the thieves in the Home Alone movies.

A gang member filmed a job near a cemetery and was later recorded as mentioning that people nearby thought he was mourning at a graveside and not ‘spying’ on a potential target.

ten firms in Birmingham, Wolverhampton, Dudley, Walsall, Bilston, Perry Barr, Brierley Hill, Kidderminster, Tamworth and Shrewsbury were hit by the group.

The total cost of material and vehicle loss to the companies was £1.6 million. The cost to businesses was estimated at £200,000, while lost sales, the cost of improving security and increased insurance premiums cost more than £800,000.