Four men who carried out a series of mobile phone shop robberies across London have been sentenced after a fast-paced Metropolitan Police investigation.
One of the gang’s ringleaders, Sammie Govera, 32, was jailed for 13 years and six months. The men stole tens of thousands of pounds worth of phones as part of an organised criminal network responsible for targeting phone stores and stealing around £150,000 worth of mobile devices, including Apple iPhones.
The sentences follow an investigation by detectives from the Met’s Flying Squad, a specialist team that investigates high-value commercial robberies, who analysed hours of CCTV footage, forensic evidence and mobile phone data to identify those involved.
Dramatic body-worn footage released by the Met shows the moment officers swooped on the gang following a covert surveillance operation, as they attempted to rob an O2 phone shop in Sutton.
The robberies
Between 28 May and 9 June 2025, the gang targeted six Three and O2 stores across London, including in Lewisham, Woolwich, Wood Green, Haringey, Sutton and Colliers Wood.
The men threatened staff, forced access to storerooms and safes, and stole high-value mobile phones worth tens of thousands of pounds. In Woolwich alone, around £30,000 worth of phones were stolen.
Having pieced together the gang’s movements through CCTV, forensic evidence, mobile phone data and surveillance, detectives identified where they were likely to strike next and launched a covert operation in Sutton. When the gang attempted the robbery, officers were already in position. As the suspects fled, police swiftly moved in, blocking their vehicles and making arrests.
Kevlin Duarte, 19, was arrested on Saturday, 7 June 2025, after officers stopped a vehicle linked to a phone shop robbery. He fled on foot, but officers chased him down and arrested him. During the pursuit, Duarte dropped a mobile phone that was later confirmed to have been stolen from the O2 store in Colliers Wood earlier that day.
On Monday, 9 June, officers arrested ringleader Sammie Govera after an attempted robbery at an O2 store in Sutton. Louis Pandanzyla was arrested the same day. CCTV from 7 June captured four masked men entering an O2 store in Colliers Wood, where they threatened and assaulted staff and stole 21 phones.
The sentences
The following men were sentenced at Croydon Crown Court on Friday, 6 November, after being convicted of conspiracy to commit robbery following a trial at the same court:
- Sammie Govera, 32, of The Redlands, Newport — 13 years and six months’ imprisonment.
- Kevlin Duarte, 19, of Durell Road, Dagenham — one year and 10 months in a Young Offender Institution.
- Louis Pandanzyla, 18, of Clarence Avenue, Upminster — an 18-month Community Order, including 150 hours of unpaid work.
- A fourth defendant, who is under 18 and cannot be named for legal reasons — a 12-month Youth Rehabilitation Order with intensive supervision.
A total of 10 people have now been convicted as a result of the investigation.
What the detective said
Detective Chief Inspector Laura Hillier, from the Met’s Flying Squad, said: “These criminals thought they could terrorise shop staff, steal phones and vanish without a trace. They were wrong.”
“Our detectives worked quickly, piecing together CCTV, phone data and forensic evidence to catch them. Commercial robberies across London are down 13 per cent because of our relentless focus on pursuing and arresting those responsible.”
“Let this serve as a warning: if you commit robbery in London, we will find you and bring you to justice.”
The wider crackdown
The sentences come as the Met continues a crackdown on commercial robberies — with offences across London down 12.6 per cent in the 12 months ending September, compared with the previous period.
The Met continues to target every stage of the mobile phone theft trade, from offenders carrying out shop robberies and thefts to the criminal networks handling and exporting stolen devices. In September, officers arrested more than 700 suspects and recovered hundreds of suspected stolen phones as part of the Met’s largest-ever crackdown on phone theft.
Mobile phone theft and robbery fell from 81,439 offences in 2024 to 71,872 in 2025. The downward trend has continued this year, with offences down by almost a fifth. Between January and September, there were 44,064 offences compared with 53,963 during the same period last year, meaning nearly 10,000 fewer victims across London.
