Criminal gang locked up for 45 years

Four men have been sent to prison for a total of 45 years after being convicted of burgling a house in the St Mellons area of Cardiff in June 2023.

On June 14 last year the four men and a 17-year-old boy travelled to Cardiff in two hire vehicles with altered registration numbers.

Charlie Seeney and Thomas Hagans broke into the address and stole a safe which was hidden inside.

Simon Seeney – Charlie’s father - and Ras Thomas were also present with the two vehicles.

Detectives investigating the burglary were able to identify the hire vehicles and tracked them travelling from Taunton on the same day.

Unknown to officers at the time the gang had just committed an aggravated burglary in Taunton where they forced entry to an address with crowbars and machetes, forced the occupants into a house and to lie face down. The occupants were also assaulted. They made off with approximately £50,000 worth of jewellery from this address.

Using CCTV, mobile phone data and vehicle tracking technology officers were able to identify the suspects at an early stage and traced them to addresses in Birmingham, Bristol and Cardiff.

Charlie Seeney (18) and Simon Seeney (42), both from Birmingham pled guilty to burglary, aggravated burglary and assault before the trial started.

On Wednesday February 21 following a trial Thomas Hagans (41) from Birmingham, Ras Thomas (41) from Cardiff and Craig Shaw (34) from Birmingham were found guilty by a jury. They were sentenced today (April 3) at Newport Crown Court.

• Ras Thomas received a 13-year sentence.

• Thomas Hagans received 13-year sentence.

• Craig Shaw received 10-year sentence.

• Simon Seeney received 9-year sentence.

Charlie Seeney is now aged 18 but was 17 at time of his sentence. He was dealt with at Birmingham Youth Court and received a 12-month youth referral.

Detective Constable Rhys Perrett said: “I want to pay tribute to the victims of both crimes for their strength and courage throughout the investigation.

“This was a complex investigation in which South Wales Police, Avon and Somerset Constabulary and the Crown Prosecution Service worked to together to achieve the guilty pleas and convictions we have seen in Court.

“The sentences handed down at Newport Crown Court reflect the serious nature of the crimes these men committed. These dangerous individuals are now in custody for a significant amount of time.”

“The joint efforts South Wales Police and our colleagues in Avon and Somerset shows the dedication to keeping our communities safe by taking dangerous offenders like these off the streets for a considerable amount of time.”