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Migrant started £19,000 crime spree just two days after arriving in UK
The Romanian migrant has been jailed for over two years, and will then be deported from the UK.
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A cash machine thief who launched a crime spree just days after arriving in the UK will be deported back to Romania after serving his 27 month prison sentence.
Andrei Matei admitted to over 480 charges of ATM theft, totalling around £19,000, and causing more than £35,000 of criminal damage in Leeds Crown Court on Wednesday, February 26.
The 35-year-old drove an accomplice between cash machines across a huge stretch of the UK, using a modified tool to jam ATM dispensers and take the money from inside, the court heard.
He committed the first theft on August 9, 2023, just two days after arriving in the country from Romania.
Matei proceeded to steal money from cash machines in London, Wiltshire, Berkshire, West Yorkshire and Nottinghamshire before being arrested by authorities in West Yorkshire on September 1.
He admitted to 483 counts of ATM theft and criminal damage and was sentenced to 27 years behind bars, followed by immediate deportation.
Mitigating, Felicity Hemlin told the court that it was the Romanian's first time in custody and that he regretted committing the spate of offences.
"He hasn't asked me to put forward any personal mitigation as he says he has done wrong and deserves his punishment," she said.
"He will serve his time and be deported immediately."
The investigation was initially launched by West Yorkshire Police, but the Yorkshire and Humber Regional Organised Crime Unit quickly became involved after CCTV from petrol stations and supermarkets across the country revealed the extent of the crime spree.
Judge Stubbstold told the 35-year-old, whose registered address is in Crumpsall, Manchester, that he believed he had travelled to the UK with the express intention of stealing thousands from cash machines.
"Less than 24 hours after arriving here, you travelled the length and breadth of the country [visiting] cash machines to plunder," he said.
"This was a successful, sophisticated and professional crime. You must receive a sentence that reflects that."
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