Three men have been jailed for a combined 10 years and two months after police foiled their attempt to tunnel into a Tooting jewellery shop. The gang was caught red-handed in the early hours of July 17, 2026, after officers responded to a burglary alert on Mitcham Road at 3.12am.
Arrests and Investigation
Laurentiu-Daniel Nitisoara, 38, was arrested immediately in a nearby alleyway. Officers then located Ioan Asafeti, 39, hiding on a rooftop. A subsequent search of a massage parlour the pair had broken into revealed their plan to dig through the wall into the neighbouring jewellery shop. Police body-worn video shows bags of tools and equipment used for the digging.
Following these arrests, detectives identified a car linked to the group and used mobile phone data to track down Sergiu Plastin, 42, who was arrested at Stansted Airport as he attempted to flee to Ireland. The trio were later linked to several burglaries across the capital between May and July, mainly targeting jewellers using tunnelling techniques to bypass security systems.
Sentencing and Impact
On Friday, October 23, the men were sentenced at Kingston Crown Court after pleading guilty in August to conspiracy to commit burglary with intent to steal and cause criminal damage. Asafeti, of no fixed address, was jailed for four years and ten months. Plastin, of Portadown, Craigavon in Northern Ireland, was jailed for three years and four months. Nitisoara, of no fixed address, was jailed for two years.
Detective Chief Inspector Craig Magee, from the Met’s Flying Squad, said: “Today’s sentencing sends a clear message: if you target London businesses, we’ll catch you, and you will face justice. Our crackdown on thieves is delivering results. We're driving down commercial burglary across the capital, with offences falling by 11 per cent in the past 12 months. The arrests of these three thieves didn't just stop this burglary. They formed part of a wider Flying Squad investigation that uncovered an organised crime group linked to a string of jewellery shop break-ins across London worth more than £700,000.”
Wider Crackdown
The Met said commercial burglary offences fell by 10.7 per cent in the 12 months to September, compared with the previous 12 months. Visible patrols in 'hot spots' have been ramped up to help catch criminals. Further enquiries through Interpol revealed the group had possible links to similar offences in Europe. The Met added it remains committed to tackling burglary across the capital and keeping Londoners safe.
