A criminal gang who had almost £ 450,000 in 'callig' scam 'in his pocket after stealing bank details of general surgeon, care houses and hospices was imprisoned.
Ringleaders Darren Wykes, 46, and George Quinn, 57, performed 46 'Sluip in' Burglaries over a period of two years.
The gang also focused on hotels and schools and stable wallets and wallets from staff rooms.
After stealing the valuables, the couple, together with David Ovington, 59, and Daniel Sutherland, would call the victims who said they were employees of the bank.
They then tried to mislead the victims to tell them their pin code.
As soon as the code was given, another member of the gang would immediately buy high -quality items or foreign currencies.
Between 2023 and 2024 the gang stole £ 447,000 of 48 victims they used to finance a lush lifestyle, the police said.
All of Coventry admitted the group 46 charges of conspiracy to commit burglary and fraud at the Lincoln Crown Court.
George Quinn (photo), 57, was sentenced to five years behind bars
Wykes buys a diamond ring with a stolen bank card, he uses his knuckles to enter the input pin on card reader and avoid fingerprints
Wykes was imprisoned for five years and five months, while Quinn was sentenced to five years behind bars.
Ovington and Sutherland were both sentenced to 21 months, two years suspended.
Detective Sergeant Petty said: 'These unscrupulous fraudsters were aimed at hard -working people who do their utmost for their local communities, using each trick in the book to mislead and manipulate their victims.
'They would demand a false scenario to create a panic situation, to use the victims while they are the most vulnerable to get their pin fraudulently.
“These criminals shamelessly exploited people through peat engineering of alarming situations to mislead them to transfer their pins. This was a refined operation. '
Wykes had entered a workplace on various occasions and won by bags or jackets to steal purses or wallets.
He then called Quinn on a burner telephone to pass on details of the stolen maps.
Quinn would call the reception where Wykes had stolen the wallet, claimed to be a banker or a police officer and ask to speak urgently against the person mentioned on the map.
Darren Wykes (photo), 46, was imprisoned for five years and five months
A gray cap and mask found in the transitpe of Darren Wykes
He would provide fake details about how their wallet or wallet was found before he offered to put security blocks on the cards.
During the phone calls, Quinn tried to persuade the victim to tell him their pin code for security reasons.
While he called, Wykes Stand -By would be in a store with a burner telephone.
As soon as Quinn provided the pin, he would buy expensive electric items or use the card to obtain high value of foreign currency from the current exchange rate.
He also used stolen driver's license as an identification for these transactions.
The Lincolnshire police have released a phone call from one of the gang members to a nurse who was misled to tell them her PIN code.
Wykes was often caught on CCTV with a blue baseball cap and Covid mask, making it difficult to control his identity.
During one scam, Wykes entered a travel agent in Skegness, Lincolnshire, to buy £ 4,000 in strange currency using a stolen bank card.
Darren Wykes Seen on CCTV Search by employee safe in a hotel
Darren Wykes collects an iPad bought with a stolen map
And in their two -year crime spree the gang used 20 telephones, of which six were burner telephones that they often threw to prevent detection.
They also used four vehicles to travel across the length and width of the country where they had focused on the buildings on Raid.
Wykes saw £ 447,000 go through his bank account, of which £ 127,000 was paid in cash at post offices in the Coventry area.
The group was caught when officers stormed a van that was owned by Sutherland used in various burglaries.
They found a stolen wallet in the van that was taken just an hour earlier by the operation of a doctor in Alford.
When Wykes was arrested during the management of his wife's Mercedes in Bristol, officers also found bank cards that were taken from a general practitioner operation.
He also had a wallet that was stolen from a pub in Southampton weeks earlier in Southampton.
The police now intend action by the proceeds from Crime Act to reclaim stolen property and funds.
