Four in court over Bayston Hill robbery
Four men have been charged with conspiracy to commit robbery following a series of raids at convenience stores in the West Midlands, including one in Shropshire.
All four will appear before magistrates in Cannock, today, charged with conspiracy to commit robbery.
They are charged in connection with seven robberies where cash and cigarettes were amongst the items stolen.
They were arrested on Tuesday as part of a regional operation involving officers and staff from several forces Staffordshire, West Midlands, West Mercia and partner organisations including the National Crime Agency and Central Motorway Policing Group.
The seven robberies took place between 9 September and 23 October this year.
In Shropshire they targeted the Spa store in Bayston Hill on October 16, locking staff in a room as they loaded cigarettes into a large bag. Other areas they targeted were Codsall, Wolverhampton, Wombourne, Penkridge and Gornall.
The four men are Craig Osmund-Smith, aged 40, of Valley Road, Dudley, Graham Aulton, aged 32, of High Street, Wednesfield, Stewart Ferguson, aged 34, of Talbot Lane, Millfields, Bilston and Alan Britton, aged 40, of Duke Street, Wolverhampton.
