{{Short description|Group of Romanichal criminals}} {{Redirect|Michael Nicholls|the Australian professional wrestler|Mikey Nicholls}} {{Use British English|date=September 2014}} {{Use dmy dates|date=April 2026}} '''The Johnson Gang''' is the collective name for a group of Romanichal criminals from Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, who specialised in stealing fine art and antiques from English country houses over a period of 20 years. The goods they stole are estimated to be worth between £30 million and £80 million.<ref name="Scotsman">{{cite news |url=https://www.scotsman.com/news/family-gang-who-stole-163-80m-from-lords-and-ladies-jailed-for-49-years-1-1084112 |title=Family gang who stole £80m from 'lords and ladies' jailed for 49 years |work=The Scotsman |accessdate=6 January 2018 |location=Edinburgh |first=Stephen|last=McGinty|date=7 August 2008}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/news/the-johnsons-britains-no-1-crime-family-1516747.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220618/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/news/the-johnsons-britains-no-1-crime-family-1516747.html |archive-date=18 June 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |title=The Johnsons: 'Britain's No 1 crime family'? |work=The Independent |date=27 January 2009 |accessdate=6 January 2018 }}</ref> The gang were sentenced to a total of 49 years in prison in August 2008.<ref name="Bristol"/>
The gang comprised Ricky Johnson (born 1954), his sons Richard "Chad" Johnson (born 1975) and Albi Johnson (born 1983), Daniel O'Loughlin (born 1976 and the nephew of Ricky Johnson), and Michael Nicholls (born 1979) the boyfriend of Ricky Johnson's daughter.<ref name="Scotsman"/> In addition to the thefts from stately homes the gang were involved in thefts from shops, cash machines, and metal merchants.<ref name="BBC"/>
In 2005, the BBC made a documentary about the family called ''Summer with the Johnsons'', in which they spoke about their love of such pursuits as hare coursing and bare-knuckle boxing. They denied having burgled any country homes, but Ricky Johnson said: <blockquote> I would like to make it clear to the people out there, to the police and the rich people ... if I feel the need when I have got to rob a stately home, I will do so. I will rob it and hope I don't get caught. But I will only rob your house if I feel the need and I have got to feed my children and nobody is helping me achieve my goal. I feel I have got the fucking right to rob the lords, the sirs and the ladies.<ref name="BBC"/> </blockquote>
==Crimes== [[Image:Waddesden Manor03.JPG|thumb|right|upright=1.1|Waddesdon Manor, where over £5 million of antiques were stolen in June 2003]] The gang are believed to have been operating for a period of more than 20 years.<ref name="BBC">{{cite news|url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/7544650.stm|title=Five jailed for biggest burglary|publisher=BBC.co.uk|access-date=6 January 2018 | date=6 August 2008}}</ref> The most spectacular and lucrative thefts occurred in a period between April 2003 and June 2006. The gang staked out properties for several weeks before the crimes and used 4x4 vehicles to ram heavily bolted gates.<ref name="antiques"/>
Notable thefts include Waddesdon Manor on 10 June 2003, a National Trust property and former Rothschild family residence near Aylesbury in Buckinghamshire. Goods including 100 antique gold snuff boxes worth around £5 million were stolen.<ref name="Timeline"/> These boxes belonged to a charity that belonged to the Rothschild family. One small sweet-box from this theft was identified at auction and recovered in 2021.<ref name="Sherwood2022">{{cite news |last1=Sherwood |first1=Harriet |title=Gold box stolen in 2003 Waddesdon Manor heist is returned home |url=https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2022/apr/24/gold-box-stolen-in-2003-waddesdon-manor-heist-is-returned-home |access-date=24 April 2022 |work=The Guardian |issue=27 April 2022}}</ref>
On 24 October 2005, Warneford Place in Sevenhampton, Wiltshire, the home of Formula One motor racing tycoon Paddy McNally, and the former home of James Bond creator Ian Fleming,<ref name="fleming"/> was burgled and items worth £750,000 were taken.<ref name="Timeline"/> The thieves removed heavy steel bars from the drawing room windows and bypassed the manor's security system.<ref name="fleming">{{cite web |url=http://www.thisiswiltshire.co.uk/news/7276162.Daring_raid_on_tycoon_s_home/ |title=Daring raid on tycoon's home |work=This is Wiltshire.co.uk |date=22 June 2004 |accessdate=6 January 2018}}</ref>
On 1 February 2006, the gang perpetrated their biggest theft when they burgled Ramsbury Manor, the home of Harry Hyams, near Marlborough in Wiltshire. The theft is believed to be the largest domestic burglary in the United Kingdom.<ref name="Timeline">{{cite news |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/2510656/Timeline-of-Johnson-gangs-raids.html |title=Timeline of Johnson gangs raids |work=The Telegraph |accessdate=6 January 2018 |location=London |date=6 August 2008}}</ref> Prosecutor Paul Reid said that: <blockquote> This has been described as the most valuable domestic burglary ever committed in this country. The collection is described as priceless. There is a difficulty in putting a value on antiques and antiquities – some of them very precious and very rare – but it is tens of millions of pounds.<ref name="Scotsman"/> </blockquote>
==Investigation and convictions== In October 2005, the police forces of Gloucestershire, Thames Valley, Warwickshire, and West Mercia pooled their resources under the name "Operation Haul". The police spent weeks examining CCTV footage, mobile phone records and images from speed cameras as they investigated 116 offences ranging from country house burglaries to cash dispenser thefts. In April 2006, detectives discovered an underground bunker at a field owned by an associate of the Johnsons near Stratford-upon-Avon. Inside were a number of black bins containing straw and porcelain which was linked to the Ramsbury Manor burglary.<ref name="telegraph"/>
Police arrested Ricky Johnson and Daniel O'Loughlin in June 2006 for the theft of metals worth £360,000. They were convicted at Bristol along with eight other associates in September 2007.<ref name="Bristol">{{cite web |url=http://www.thisisbristol.co.uk/wdp/news/Good-riddance-Johnsons/article-254875-detail/article.html |title=Good riddance to the Johnsons |publisher=westerndailypress.co.uk |accessdate=9 August 2008 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20090628091620/http://www.thisisbristol.co.uk/wdp/news/Good-riddance-Johnsons/article-254875-detail/article.html |archivedate=28 June 2009 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> They and the rest of the gang were charged with the other burglaries in October 2006. They were found guilty of conspiracy to commit burglary in August 2008 following a month-long trial at Reading Crown Court. Richard "Chad" Johnson and Daniel O'Loughlin, were both jailed for 11 years; Michael Nicholls was given 10 years; Albi Johnson, aged 25, was jailed for nine years; and Ricky Johnson was given eight years.<ref name="telegraph"/>
Despite the convictions, antiques worth tens of millions of pounds have yet to be recovered. Passing sentence, Judge Christopher Critchlow said: "Little of the property has been recovered and is no doubt well hidden in the countryside or passed on for disposal." Since the arrests only three items have been recovered: two clocks, including a Benjamin Vulliamy bracket clock which aroused the suspicions of an auctioneer; and a 17th-century portrait by Abraham van Diepenbeck, stolen from Ramsbury, which was found in May 2008.<ref name="antiques">{{cite web |url=https://www.antiquestradegazette.com/news/2008/johnson-family-jailed-but-stolen-antiques-still-remain-at-large/ |title=Johnson family jailed but stolen antiques still remain at large |work=Antiques Trade Gazette |accessdate=6 January 2018 }}</ref>
Since the arrests in 2006, Thames Valley Police have seen a 90 per cent reduction in offences attributable to the group, and across all areas there has been a dramatic decrease in country house burglaries, and in cash machine and metal thefts.<ref name="telegraph">{{cite news|url=http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/crime/article4471587.ece |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080906220111/http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/crime/article4471587.ece |url-status=dead |archive-date=6 September 2008 |title=Notorious Johnson family members jailed for UK's biggest heist |publisher=Telegraph.co.uk|accessdate=8 August 2008 |location=London |date=7 August 2008 |first=Simon |last=de Bruxelles}}</ref>
==References== {{Reflist}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Johnson Gang, The}} Category:20th-century British criminals Category:21st-century British criminals Category:British people convicted of burglary Category:20th-century English criminals Category:English prisoners and detainees Category:Organised crime groups in England Category:Romani organized crime groups Category:Prisoners and detainees of England and Wales Category:21st-century English criminals