
Career criminal who swiped £250k from Jenson Button's wife is jailed after CCTV showed shocking heist
Mum claimed she is too 'traumatised' to return to London
RAID HORROR Career criminal who swiped £250k from Jenson Button's wife is jailed after CCTV showed shocking heist
A CAREER criminal who swiped £250,000 from Jenson Button's wife has been jailed after the terrifying heist was caught on camera.
Mourad Aid, 41, stole Brittny's carry-on, which contained lavish jewellery and designer handbags, from St Pancras station.
Advertisement
5
Jenson Button's wife was robbed at St Pancras station
Credit: Getty
5
Mourad Aid stole a red suitcase containing £250k of goods
Credit: British Transport Police
5
Brittny later said she did not want to return to the UK
Footage showed Formula One driver Button stood with his back turned as he helped a chauffeur load his belongings into a vehicle.
Aid was then filmed running through the busy station and past the British Library while wheeling the red suitcase.
He has now been two years and four months after pleading guilty to theft at Westminster Magistrates' court.
The Algerian national will be automatically deported once he has served his sentence, Mail Online reports.
Advertisement
Brittny revealed the bag had more than £250,000 worth of items, including countless sentimental objects and antique jewellery from her wedding and the birth of her daughter.
The suitcase also contained two Kelly bags, which together are worth a whopping £70,000.
Ex-Playboy model Brittny said she would normally not carry such sentimental items but was travelling for a Valentine's trip to Paris.
Many of the stolen goods were listed online following the theft - although these were later tracked down.
Advertisement
Brittny, now an interior designer, says the experience left her "traumatised" and cast a dark cloud over their getaway.
She also revealed the couple have "no interest" in flying back to the UK from California, where they currently live.
The mum added: "It definitely was shocking that I just didn't think.
"I'm normally pretty cautious when I'm out in public and travelling, but I just didn't think that there were gangs literally just waiting for people and watching."
Advertisement
Aid was arrested by plain clothes officers on February 17 - four days after the couple were targeted.
British Transport Police Detective Sergeant Marc Farmer said: "This was a brazen and opportunistic theft by a man who took advantage of the victim and her husband having their backs turned for a matter of seconds while loading up their car with luggage.
"He was able to quickly swipe the suitcase without them even noticing, which hammers home just how sneaky these sorts of criminals really are and why it's so important to keep one eye on your belongings at all times.
"While the incident wasn't captured on CCTV, we were still able to trace Aid through other investigative opportunities, and he was arrested by our plain clothes officers just days later."
Advertisement
5
The thief has been jailed for two years
Credit: British Transport Police

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Daily Mirror
8 hours ago
- Daily Mirror
Reason Brit 'drug mules' are 'flavour of the month' for shady gangs is exposed
Recently, Bella Culley, from Billingham, County Durham, was arrested in Georgia and Charlotte May Lee, from Coulsdon in London, allegedly had a synthetic strain of cannabis in her luggage in Sri Lanka Party-going Brits are the "flavour of the month" for drug smuggler gangs, experts warned today. Insiders say Brits are being recruited on the promise of quick cash and the "perfect package" luxury holiday in the likes of Thailand and Indonesia. However, some are never making it home - or are absent for months - because they are being banged up in hellhole jails for drug smuggling offences. Bella Culley, from Billingham, County Durham, and Charlotte May Lee, from Coulsdon, south London, are just two of the several Brits to be lured into the murky world recently. However, in a case that has bucked the trend, a 79-year-old William 'Billy Boy' Eastment, of Somerset, was arrested in Chile last week after a Mexican gang allegedly promised him £3.7million to smuggle a suitcase of crystal meth from Cancun. And experts say the variety highlights how age isn't a barrier for these gangs. One drugs expert said: "They recruit anyone they think looks innocent enough to get through customs, and yet still be dodgy enough to do the deal." Airport security - both in the UK and abroad - is now said to be on high alert for suspicious behaviour that staff may associate with drug smuggling. Culley, for instance, was snagged in Georgia after allegedly carrying 14kg of cannabis into the ex-Soviet nation from Thailand, where she had been holidaying. And Lee, a former TUI flight attendant, is locked up in a Sri Lankan prison after police allegedly discovered 46kg of "Kush" - a synthetic strain of cannabis - in her suitcase when she arrived on a flight from Thailand. A flurry of similar cases have followed including 36-year-old OnlyFans model Clara Wilson, from Nottinghamshire, 21-year-old Cameron Bradford, from Hertfordshire, and 29-year-old Kimberly Hall, from Middlesbrough, who have all been arrested on suspicion of smuggling abroad. Gary Carroll, an expert witness in drug cases, told Mail Online crooks are targeting young people, particularly women, on social media. Mr Carroll, who spent 14 years in policing before becoming a witness, told the publication: "It's (social media) created a gateway for suppliers to target and make connections with young, well-travelled, glamorous ladies and girls that are seeking that ability to travel the world and afford to do so. "Smuggling drugs or packages where they're not entirely sure of the contents in exchange for free holidays and cash seems quite a lucrative offer." Mr Carroll, from Claymore Advisory Group, said he has worked on cases where the "common denominator" is free accommodation, free flights, spending money and some cash with which to come home. He added: "I've even seen business class being thrown in there to sweeten the deal. It's almost the perfect package for those that want to travel, take all the pictures for social media at no expense of their own." Dr David Holmes, a leading criminal psychologist, warned Brits to be vigilant on holiday as he said some gang members will brazenly approach tourists on beaches with offers to join the murky underworld. He said: "It's anyone they think looks innocent enough to get through customs, and yet still be dodgy enough to do the deal. It may be that Brits are the flavour of the month - and I would imagine it's quite more likely that Brits are the flavour of the month with airport security.. That's why they are being picked up more, because they are being picked on more." Police in Sri Lanka, meanwhile, insist Lee - arrested on suspicion of trying to smuggle 101lb (46kg) the synthetic strain of cannabis into the country - is "in a lot of trouble". The Brit faces up to 25 years in a tough maximum-security jail in Sri Lanka if she is convicted.


Spectator
11 hours ago
- Spectator
Have I unmasked Cambridge's bike bandit?
The Cambridge bike bandit emerged. I watched the rough, smiling face of the old man who came slowly from his bungalow and urged me to join him around the back; he didn't look like a thief. We entered his grassless yard filled with bikes, tyres and tools. 'This Raleigh, £80,' he said, withdrawing a creaky frame from the pile. 'I just changed the tyre. You see? Not heavy. Made in England. Nottingham. You can try a little bit. Try it for ten minutes. I don't mind.' A source had told me about the bandit, a man who openly shifted stolen bikes from a suburban Cambridge home, so bad and unpoliced has bike theft become in the city. I had got the outlaw's phone number and arranged to meet him under the guise of making a purchase. Around 1,200 bikes were reported stolen in Cambridge last year, six times the number in places of comparable size such as Ipswich or Blackpool. I had arrived into the city at Cambridge North station, which has a bike rack surrounded by nine CCTV cameras, and which last year the British Transport Police said had the highest rate of bike theft of any train station in the country. 'We take cycle security very seriously,' said a spokesman for Greater Anglia, the firm that operates Cambridge North. I returned the Raleigh to the bandit after a short test ride in his cul de sac. Try another, he suggested. 'More expensive? Cheaper?' The bandit was accommodating, relaxed – he held an enviable position in Cambridge's criminal economy. I was told he had a policy of returning a stolen bike if its owner visited him and asked nicely, so no one wanted him reported to the police.


The Sun
14 hours ago
- The Sun
Inside Michael Schumacher's tragic health battle in Majorca hideaway – as pal makes heartbreaking prediction for future
WITH fists pumping and arms aloft, racing great Michael Schumacher celebrated his many victories with the same energy as his driving. And that is how the Formula One team boss who turned the German legend into a champion three decades ago prefers to think of him. 7 7 Not as the incapacitated survivor of a horrific skiing accident that Schumacher is said to have become. Italian businessman Flavio Briatore said this week: 'If I close my eyes. I see him smiling after a victory. 'I prefer to remember him like that rather than him just lying on a bed.' Flavio's comments reveal the day-to-day struggles faced by the now-reclusive sporting hero, who once epitomised the swashbuckling spirit of adrenaline sport. Schumacher, 56, would go wheel-to-wheel with rivals at extreme speeds on the scariest of bends en route to a record-breaking seven Formula One world championships. Off the track he would party with pals, smoke big cigars, sky dive, scuba dive and fly helicopters. 'Michael communicates with his eyes' But nothing has been seen of Michael since his near-fatal crash on Alpine slopes in France on December 29, 2013. Rumours of medical miracles, appearances, fresh photos and interviews frequently spread online. But a Formula One insider tells The Sun that like Flavio, the world needs to get used to not seeing Michael's beaming smile anymore. Craig Scarborough, who has been covering the sport for around 25 years and interviewed Michael many times, reveals: 'I spoke to someone who is very, very close to him and they just explained we're not going to hear any more from him. 'He's in a comfortable position as far as he can be with his state of health.' It has been reported that only three people see Michael at his secluded home on the Spanish island of Majorca. Even Flavio, 75, who has been a close friend of Michael since they began working together at the Benetton racing team in 1991, has not seen him for a while. But the Italian says he 'often' speaks to Michael's wife Corinna, 56. Much of her time is said to be consumed by maintaining her husband's care and keeping the exact details of his current health condition a secret. And Corinna has also had to cope with the distress of dealing with a blackmail plot. Yilmaz Tozturkan, 53, and his son Daniel Lins, 30, threatened to publish videos and pictures of Michael unless they were given £12million. Security guard Markus Fritsche had copied the private material while working for the Schumachers and sold it to the two men. 7 In February the trio were found guilty of their part in the blackmail plot. Fritsche was given a two-year suspended sentence, while Tozturkan was jailed for three years and Lins was given a six-month suspended prison sentence by a German court. Corinna wanted a harsher sentence for Fritsche. She said: 'What still shocks me most is the massive breach of trust. 'He should receive a punishment for this that deters others from potentially doing the same.' And last October stories emerged claiming that Michael had attended the wedding of his daughter Gina, 27, in Majorca. Guests and staff had to hand over their mobile phones, while security guards made sure no one could snoop on the ceremony or party. But Michael's former Benetton teammate Johnny Herbert said: 'From what I understand, that was all fake news. ' While it remains possible that Schumacher did attend the wedding in a wheelchair, another story was definitely made up. Last year Corinna successfully sued German magazine Die Aktuelle for claiming on its cover 'Michael Schumacher, the first interview!' In fact the quotes had been generated by artificial intelligence. What no outsider can be sure about is whether Michael could give an interview if he wanted to. There have been conflicting accounts of his health condition. When Michael's head hit a boulder in the skiing accident 12 years ago, it split his helmet in two. The brain injury was so serious that he spent 250 days in a coma. The best medical treatment that money could buy brought the sports star, worth £468million, back to consciousness. There had been rumours that further treatment in Paris had allowed Michael to take small steps, but that was later dismissed. 7 7 Most people in the know indicate that he is unable to talk, although it is possible he could use eye movements to send messages like the late scientist Stephen Hawking did. In 2020 Flavio's former wife Elisabetta Gregoraci claimed: 'Michael doesn't speak, he communicates with his eyes.' Friends do visit and he still follows sports. Former Ferrari F1 chief Jean Todt said: 'I can see him but of course, what I miss is what we used to do together. 'I watch Grand Prix with Michael.' Corinna also indicated there was an attempt to maintain normality in difficult circumstances. She said in a 2021 Netflix documentary: 'We're together. 'We live together at home. 'We do therapy. 'We're trying to carry on as a family' 'We do everything we can to make Michael better and to make sure he's comfortable. And to simply make him feel our family, our bond. 'And no matter what, I will do everything I can. We all will. 'We're trying to carry on as a family, the way Michael liked it and still does.' It was reported by German media, ahead of the ten-year anniversary of his skiing accident in 2023, that Schumacher receives 24-hour care from a team of up to 15 people. He has been driven in a Mercedes road car, and played sounds from the F1 track, to stimulate his brain with familiar noises. There has been plenty of good family news to lift Michael's spirits. Last month he became a grandfather for the first time when Gina gave birth to her daughter Millie. And his son Mick, 26, is said to have found love with Danish model Laila Hasanovic, 23, who is reportedly trusted enough to have visited Michael. Mick, who spent two years as a F1 driver, was only 14 when his dad suffered the debilitating head injury. In the Netflix documentary he said he would give 'anything' to talk to him about the sport again. He commented: 'I think dad and I would understand each other in a different way now, simply because we speak a similar language, the language of motorsport, and we would have a lot to talk about. "That's where my head is at most of the time, thinking that would be so cool. I'd give anything just for that.' Craig reckons having close personal time with Mick and other family members is vital for the stricken motorsports star. Physical workload He says: 'I think a lot of people demand stuff from him and I think that's wrong. 'He is himself, and his family have a lot to contend with. 'Until you've cared for somebody, I don't think anyone realises the emotion and the physical workload. "The fact that they have been bold enough to withdraw from public life and not be tempted to do exclusives out there to various people, I think, is noble, and I hope that continues. 'I hope they can find happiness in the situation they find themselves in.' Like Flavio, Craig is more comfortable talking about the Michael people knew before the ski tragedy. He says: 'He was a guy who enjoyed his personal time. 'He loved his family. 'He did lots of lovely things. 'He clearly liked a drink. 'He loved a big cigar. 'But he had lots of time to bring up his son.' While it is understandable that Michael's army of fans want to hear from him again, they may have to make do with recalling his past glories. There were certainly more than enough of them for Flavio and others to remember.