Ten members of a Hampshire gang who colluded in the theft of around £110,000-worth of DIY goods have today been put behind bars.
Ringleader George Mason enlisted family members and friends in a campaign that involved stealing merchandise from B&Q and Homebase over a 10-month period and then selling it online.

But this morning a judge at Southampton Crown Court sentenced the gang to a total of 23 years in prison, as well as handing out one suspended sentence and a community order to two further participants.

The criminals' modus operandi mirrored that of a gang of three jailed in January this year who stole products including showers and Karcher washers from branches of B&Q. They would load the items into a trolley and wheel it into the store's garden area, where it would be hidden. They would then return at night, cut through the fence and remove the goods.

However, while the three men netted £15,000 from that operation, Mason's gang removed an estimated £110,000-worth of goods, which also included showers, other bathroom fixtures and fittings and Karcher washers.

Again trolleys were filled with merchandise, hidden in the garden centre area of a store and retrieved later when members of the gang cut through the fence. Some of the items were thrown over the store's wall.

Small teams from the gang, which included Mason's mother and sister, were deployed into the stores between December 2011 and October 2012. The goods were later sold via several Ebay accounts.

Mason was sentenced to five years for conspiracy to steal bathroom fixtures and fittings, two years to run concurrently for stealing Karcher products; three and a half years to run concurrently for conspiracy to convert criminal property relating to the bathroom products; eight months to run concurrently for conspiracy to convert criminal property relating to Karcher products; and eight months to run concurrently for stealing vacuums.

Other custodial sentences handed down by the judge were: Jeremy French of Swaythling, two years; Michelle Moore of Swaythling, nine months and a further nine months to run concurrently; Mark Bowers of Southampton, three and a half years; Mason's mother, Caroline Kirkland, of Swaythling, six months; Mason's sister, Yvonne Banagham, of Woolston, two and a half years; Ryan Vaughan of Eastleigh, two years and three months and 21 months to run concurrently and a further two years to run concurrently; Kevin Owen of Southampton, three and a half years and two years to run concurrently and a further eight months to run concurrently; Shelley Emm of Mansbridge, 14 months and a further 14 months to run concurrently; and Darren Mintram of Southampton, two years and nine months and 21 months to run concurrently.

Lindsey Daish and Amy Daniels, both of Southampton, were given a suspended sentence and community order respectively.

A spokesperson for Homebase told DIY Week: "We have worked closely with the police to help bring these people to justice. We hope this sends a clear signal that we take this sort of activity very seriously."