Burglar killed in car crash on the way to raid antiques centre

The surviving men - some of whom had previously been jailed for a £30million robbery plot on country mansions and a string of ram-raids on cash machines - were all seriously injured.

Jimmy Loveridge, Paul Smith, Albert Johnson and Rocky Broadway were speeding through country lanes in a stolen black Mercedes A45 when Loveridge, who was driving, cut the corner going round a blind bend.

A judge heard how Stephen Mansfield, a local farmer, was horrified to see the car hurtling towards him in his carriageway.

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Judge Michael Gledhill said: "The collision was catastrophic. The vehicles had collided when both were travelling at about 50mph.

"Although seriously injured, Mr Mansfield managed to force open the damaged driver’s door and stagger from the middle of the road, where his car had come to rest, to the safety of the verge," he recounted.

"The consequences of the collision and his injuries have been dreadful – the physical injuries, the damage to his family life, to his work and financially,"

Prosecutor Robert Forrest told how father-of-three Rocky Broadway - a backseat passenger in the Mercedes - lay dead of his injuries while Loveridge, Smith and Johnson were all seriously injured.

During the lengthy trial a jury heard how the three men were on their way to stage a robbery at the Swan Antiques Centre in Tetsworth when the crash happened on the B4011, near Bicester, on June 10 last year.

Judge Gledhill said: "When the police arrived at the scene, it was very soon apparent that the men were, at least, up to no good.

"A large, sharp, serrated machete-type knife was clearly visible in the front footwell of the Mercedes. There were other burglars’ tools in the vehicle – including chains with hooks, a four-foot-long iron bar and bolt croppers. The two defendants who remained on the scene when the police arrived were, or had been, wearing gloves and balaclavas."

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He concluded: "You are all experienced, professional burglars and that night you were going about your trade."

The court also heard that the Mercedes, which was found with five cloned number plates in the boot, had been stolen from the St Albans area and had been tracked using a GPS device.

The jury convicted Loveridge, whose address was given as the Kalima Caravan Site, Woking, Surrey, of causing death by dangerous driving, causing death by driving while uninsured, three counts of causing serious injury by dangerous driving, conspiracy to commit burglary with intent to steal, using criminal property and having an article with a blade or point.

Smith, of the Pennyhill Caravan Park, Camberley, Surrey, was convicted of conspiracy to commit burglary with intent to steal, using criminal property and having an article with a blade or point.

Johnson, of Winterbotham Road, Cheltenham, was convicted by the jury of conspiracy to commit burglary with intent to steal and using criminal property.

Prosecutor Mr Forrest also outlined the defendants' previous convictions. The court heard that Loveridge and Smith had been involved in a series of ram-raids on cash machines across the South East. The pair, both 29, have seven previous convictions each, with Loveridge having been previously convicted of dangerous driving.

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Meanwhile, it was revealed that Johnson, 36, had been part of a gang that stole more than £30 million from a string of country mansions between 2005 and 2009, for which he was jailed for nine years.

Judge Gledhill sentenced Loveridge to 10 years in prison and disqualified him from driving for 10 years. Smith faces five years in prison. Johnson, who was also in breach of a suspended sentence order, will face four years and four months in prison after the judge decided to activate only four months of his suspended sentence order.