Luxury watch shop manager took own life as a 'direct result' of £1m heist court hears

THE manager of a luxury watch shop killed himself the day after it was robbed of over £1m worth of stock a court heard today.

Oliver White, 27, (above) was tied up and robbed at the 247 Kettles store in Kew Road, Richmond on May 25 2024, Woolwich Crown Court heard.

Prosecuting, Edward Brown KC, said: "247 Kettles was a premises from which very high value watched were sold. The robbery was successful and a large number of very high value watches were taken.

"The total value of the watches taken is over £1,160,000. None of the watches have been recovered and for reasons that will become clear they were not insured.

"The person managing and in charge of the office at that time was a man called Oliver White. He was held, tied up and the robbers filled what they had with them with as many of those watches as they could in the time.

"There is a postscript to this robbery – and a truly tragic postscript. The following day, therefore 26 May, Oliver White – as a direct result of the robbery - took his own life.

"His body was found in a wood near Shepperton, West London."

Junior Kunu, 31, from Lancaster Avenue, Mitchzam, Kyle Mehmet, 40, from North Road, Rotherham, and Michael Homles, 34, from student accommodation in Norfolk Park Road, Sheffield, began trial today in a case that could last up to four weeks.

The court heard that businessman Mannix Pedro, 38, is alleged to have helped them plan the raid and supplied a stolen Audi used as a getaway car.

Mehmet allegedly restrained Mr White while Kunu stole the watches.

The court heard the robbery was captured on CCTV.

Mr Brown said: "Two men physically carried out the robbery itself – they were the defendants Junior Kunu and Kyle Mehmet but as you will come to appreciate, they were not the only ones involved in the conspiracy.

"A robbery of this kind, involving watches of the value these particular watches, needed planning; planning was necessary for the physical robbery itself of course, but for the minutes, hours and days leading up to it, and for the minutes and hours at least after the robbery, there had to be planning of curse.

"Those who would help take the stolen watches away and out of London were part of the conspiracy of course – once it was decided that the very valuable proceeds of the robbery needed to be taken away, out of London and hopefully beyond the reach of the inevitable

police investigation.

"As I have said, of the conspirators, you will come to see that it was the defendants Junior Kunu and Kyle Mehmet who were the two most directly and immediately involved in the attack itself in the premises that day.

"There were at least three others involved in the conspiracy - one is the defendant here also on trial Michael Holmes. He was in the premises - not on the day of the robbery itself but two days earlier in what was either to be a robbery but aborted for some reason in the moments in the premises or a recce for the real thing – most probably the former.

"He also helped on the day of the successful robbery, in the immediate vicinity, with the robbers as they and the watches all came from the robbery, and then as the events evolved afterwards, out of London that same afternoon and evening.

"And there is a man called Mannix Pedro – he was one of the others also involved in the conspiracy to rob. He was not in the premises itself but closely involved in the planning in the background, also involved in the execution of the robbery and in the setting up of the escape with the watches by the robbers and therefore spiriting the proceeds of the robbery away immediately afterwards. He has been

tried and was convicted of Conspiracy to Rob."

The court heard another man, Michael Ashman, fled abroad and is yet to be brought back to the UK.

Mehmet also fled abroad soon after the robbery, but returned and was arrested, the court heard.

The jury was told the will be shown evidence including CCTV, mobile phone cell site data and downloads and ANPR date.

The trial continues.