Watford man acquitted as two found guilty in £1m plot

Paul McSweeney, 55, from Watford, had denied charges of conspiracy to commit theft, conspiracy to launder money and conspiracy to pervert the course of justice.

He was acquitted of all three charges along with Terrance Burrell, 57, from Theydon Bois, Mark Kendall, 56, from Loughton, Saimir Neziri, 38, from Barnet, and Christopher Shipp, 35, from Bishop’s Stortford.

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Cash-in-transit driver Andrew Measor, 51, was found guilty of being an “inside man” in the plot.

He claimed he used his nose to dial his phone to call for help from the Loomis depot in Dagenham, east London, after he was “raided” on December 30, 2021.

Stefanos Cantaris/Andrew Measor (Image: PA/Met Police)

The driver, who had worked for the firm for around three years, said £920,000 in banknotes had been stolen after a man armed with a gun approached him as he left his home and said: “I know everything that goes on. Just do as I say and everything will be OK.”

But Southwark Crown Court heard Measor handcuffed himself to the steering wheel, then waited two hours before raising the alarm over the faked robbery in Ilford, east London, with Stefanos Cantaris, 39.

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Measor, from Loughton, Essex, was found guilty of conspiracy to commit theft and conspiracy to pervert the course of justice on Tuesday.

Cantaris, from Epping, Essex, who had already pleaded guilty to the theft charge, was found guilty of conspiracy to pervert the course of justice, while they were both cleared of conspiracy to launder money.

Cantaris was remanded while Measor was granted conditional bail ahead of sentencing on March 24. Judge Dafna Spiro warned Measor he faces a lengthy prison sentence.

Andrew Measor handcuffed to the steering wheel after the fake robbery (Image: Met Police/PA)

The court heard the pair met on numerous occasions in the months leading up to the theft.

Prosecutor Catherine Farrelly told the jury the theft of the £920,000 was carried out “with the assistance and full participation” of Measor.

“They sought to hide this by faking a robbery,” she said.

“They have then, to the most part, successfully hidden the money that was stolen.”