Coronavirus: Norfolk gang admit hospital gas canister thefts
- Published
Bishop Auckland General Hospital was one five targeted by the gang over one weekend in March
Four men have admitted breaking in to hospitals during the coronavirus crisis to steal gas canisters, which could have led to operations being cancelled.
The Norfolk-based gang targeted hospitals in Stockport, Manchester and County Durham between 21 and 23 March.
Judge Paul Watson QC, sitting at Teesside Crown Court, told them it was an extremely serious offence and they should expect substantial jail terms.
The four men are due to be sentenced on 2 June and were remanded into custody.
The men, who each admitted a single charge of conspiracy to commit burglary, are:
Oliver Zak Henry Evans, 22, of Sandy Lane North, Wallington
Harry David Bradley Goodrum, 23, of Norwich Road, Dereham
Jake Alexander Roberts, 23, of Chestnut Hill, Norwich
Wayne John Grady, 41, of no fixed address
They first broke in to Stepping Hill Hospital in Stockport and stole two nitrous oxide canisters, used for pain relief.
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They then drove to Withington Hospital in Manchester and took another eight - some containing "gas and air" often used in childbirth and others nitrous oxide - from a storage unit after cutting through padlocks.
They travelled to the North East and smashed their way into a storage unit at Chester-le-Street Community Hospital to steal more canisters in the early hours of the next day.
They committed similar thefts at hospitals in Bishop Auckland and Darlington, taking 14 canisters from the latter, and driving off with them in the back of a BMW fitted with stolen number plates.
Police in Lincolnshire stopped a van the gang were using at a service station and found 29 gas canisters in the back.
It is understood the theft of the pain relief gas could have forced hospital bosses to cancel operations, and the damage to storage units could have compromised oxygen supplies needed by Covid-19 patients.
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