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Sexy Beasts: The True Story of the "Diamond Geezers" and the Record-Breaking $100 Million Hatton Garden Heist
In what has been described as a true-life blend of "Grumpy Old Men" and "Ocean's Eleven, SEXY BEASTS is an insider account of the 2015 Hatton Garden Heist, in which a group of retirement-age career criminals--the so-called "Diamond Geezers"--robbed a London jewelry vault, in what would be the biggest burglary in UK history.
The Hatton Garden Heist captured the British public's imagination more than another other crime since The Great Train Robbery. It was supposed to make a fortune for a team of old time professional criminals. Their last hurrah. A final lucrative job that would send the old codgers off on happy retirements to the badlands of Spain and beyond. It seemed to be the stuff of legends. Tens of millions of dollars worth of valuables grabbed from safety deposit boxes in a vault beneath one of the most famous jewelry districts in the world.
But where did it all go wrong for this band of old time villains? And how did the gang's bid to pull off the world's biggest burglary turn into a deadly game of cat and mouse featuring the police and London's most dangerous crime lords?
Nobody is better placed to reveal the full story of the Hatton Garden Heist than Britain's best-connected true crime writer, Wensley Clarkson. Through his unparalleled contacts inside the criminal underworld, he's finally able to reveal the astonishing details behind Britain's biggest ever burglary.
The Hatton Garden Heist captured the British public's imagination more than another other crime since The Great Train Robbery. It was supposed to make a fortune for a team of old time professional criminals. Their last hurrah. A final lucrative job that would send the old codgers off on happy retirements to the badlands of Spain and beyond. It seemed to be the stuff of legends. Tens of millions of dollars worth of valuables grabbed from safety deposit boxes in a vault beneath one of the most famous jewelry districts in the world.
But where did it all go wrong for this band of old time villains? And how did the gang's bid to pull off the world's biggest burglary turn into a deadly game of cat and mouse featuring the police and London's most dangerous crime lords?
Nobody is better placed to reveal the full story of the Hatton Garden Heist than Britain's best-connected true crime writer, Wensley Clarkson. Through his unparalleled contacts inside the criminal underworld, he's finally able to reveal the astonishing details behind Britain's biggest ever burglary.
343 pages, Kindle Edition
First published March 17, 2016
25 people are currently reading
448 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
March 13, 2019
The Hatton Garden $100 million dollar heist was one of the major crimes ever committed in the UK, even overshadowing the Great Train Robbery and the Brinks-Mat jobs., And what made it even more interesting was the identity of the robbers. If a book about a robbery can be delightful, this is it.
Hatton Gardens in the heart of London is the center of the diamond trade and other big (sometimes illegal) money transactions. The Safe Deposit Building was a reportedly impossible building to rob and it contained safety deposit boxes full of legal and no-too legal jewels, money, gold bonds, etc. This became the target for the gang who pulled if off and almost got away with it.
The group was the elite of bank robbers from the 1960-70s, who did not believe in violence or weapons and never stole from homes, only businesses. They all had served some time in prison for theft but stayed clear of the infamous and homicidal Kray twins and the Morrison crime family and went about their business without drawing much attention. Move forward to 2015 and these men were now in their late 70s and should have sitting on their porches and telling stories of the old days. But they fell into the trap of "just one more time" and the game was on.
The book covers every aspect of the planning and execution of the heist and the details are fascinating. The robbery was successful...at least for a while.....but modern technology, of which these seniors were unaware tripped them up and they were nabbed. Much of the stolen items were never recovered and nobody was talking about where it might be. It remains missing to this day.
These men were crooks, plain and simple, but the reader can't help but like them. They were old, had medical problems (one of the gang had to stop in the middle of the heist and give himself a shot of insulin), and were determined to show that they "still had it". They didn't but they gave it a hell of a try. An interesting read indeed.
Hatton Gardens in the heart of London is the center of the diamond trade and other big (sometimes illegal) money transactions. The Safe Deposit Building was a reportedly impossible building to rob and it contained safety deposit boxes full of legal and no-too legal jewels, money, gold bonds, etc. This became the target for the gang who pulled if off and almost got away with it.
The group was the elite of bank robbers from the 1960-70s, who did not believe in violence or weapons and never stole from homes, only businesses. They all had served some time in prison for theft but stayed clear of the infamous and homicidal Kray twins and the Morrison crime family and went about their business without drawing much attention. Move forward to 2015 and these men were now in their late 70s and should have sitting on their porches and telling stories of the old days. But they fell into the trap of "just one more time" and the game was on.
The book covers every aspect of the planning and execution of the heist and the details are fascinating. The robbery was successful...at least for a while.....but modern technology, of which these seniors were unaware tripped them up and they were nabbed. Much of the stolen items were never recovered and nobody was talking about where it might be. It remains missing to this day.
These men were crooks, plain and simple, but the reader can't help but like them. They were old, had medical problems (one of the gang had to stop in the middle of the heist and give himself a shot of insulin), and were determined to show that they "still had it". They didn't but they gave it a hell of a try. An interesting read indeed.
June 15, 2024
As far back as I can remember, I’ve always wanted to be a bank robber. So it was inevitable that I’d like this book - and I wasn’t disappointed. An enjoyable slice of sensationalist tabloid fun, following a gang of old-school retired criminals - who couldn’t resist one last job. And although the author treads a fine line between being sympathetic and recognising that crimes have victims, you still can’t help rooting for them.
December 13, 2016
This is an interesting tale that I first read about in Vanity Fair. Sadly however, this book took 350 pages for a story that was better told over 6 pages. And while I know you need 'anonymous' sources.....it's get's a little weary and at some point you start questioning their authenticity.
September 9, 2021
'Sexy Beasts' is certainly a dramatic read that evolves better than most thrillers and it has to be said that Wensley Clarkson must have plenty of powerful, influential contacts and inside men who have helped him with his investigations for the detail about the 'Hatton Garden Heist' is amazing.
Masterminded by long time criminal Brian Reader, assisted by some of his ageing compatriots the crime was spoken of as being committed by the 'Diamond Wheezers' because of the age of, and the various health problems suffered by, the principle participants.
It was some years in the planning and the background work that was carried out, particularly on line and via mobile telephone calls, eventually assisted the police in making their case against the criminals, who had previously, in their heyday, not had to worry about such considerations as leaving behind such technological traces.
Clarkson splits his book into three distinct sections, 'The History', 'The Job' and 'The Judgement'. In the first he recounts the backgrounds of the various people involved in the Hatton Garden job and highlights other similar operations that had been carried out both by some of those involved in Hatton Garden and others who had carried out similar heists. For instance Reader's connections with the notorious Kenneth Noye gets quite some coverage.
In the second he recounts meticulously the various stages of the robbery with testimony from a great source, 'Billy' who had inside information on it and he also has plenty of inside information on the concentrated and intense police investigations, which at one time looked likely to cause a major problem within the Flying Squad. And in the third, the trial is covered, again in some detail, and the reasons for the participants' involvement gets an airing, too.
In a final short section 'The Aftermath', Clarkson gives reasons why these old-timers first of all graduated to a life of crime and then why they felt that they had to get involved one last time. He suggests, 'These characters are basically self-destructive because their lives [when younger particularly] had little or no real purpose - and yet they loved their families deeply and in some cases remained married to one woman for their entire life.' It was certainly true of Reader who looked after his wife lovingly through illness and who was devastated when she died.
In the end he views the Hatton Garden Mob as trying 'to work like a business syndicate' as they saw themselves as 'the old executives of crime trying to make one more big bonus before retiring for good.' The sad thing for them was that it didn't quite work out like that for a master crime family who controlled Hatton Garden had one of their men involved who took the majority of the expensive material away with him and left the others to feed off relatively slim pickings. But true to the loyalty of the underworld, those caught revealed nothing -fearing for their lives if they had done so.
It's a fast-moving crime story that is well worth a read.
Masterminded by long time criminal Brian Reader, assisted by some of his ageing compatriots the crime was spoken of as being committed by the 'Diamond Wheezers' because of the age of, and the various health problems suffered by, the principle participants.
It was some years in the planning and the background work that was carried out, particularly on line and via mobile telephone calls, eventually assisted the police in making their case against the criminals, who had previously, in their heyday, not had to worry about such considerations as leaving behind such technological traces.
Clarkson splits his book into three distinct sections, 'The History', 'The Job' and 'The Judgement'. In the first he recounts the backgrounds of the various people involved in the Hatton Garden job and highlights other similar operations that had been carried out both by some of those involved in Hatton Garden and others who had carried out similar heists. For instance Reader's connections with the notorious Kenneth Noye gets quite some coverage.
In the second he recounts meticulously the various stages of the robbery with testimony from a great source, 'Billy' who had inside information on it and he also has plenty of inside information on the concentrated and intense police investigations, which at one time looked likely to cause a major problem within the Flying Squad. And in the third, the trial is covered, again in some detail, and the reasons for the participants' involvement gets an airing, too.
In a final short section 'The Aftermath', Clarkson gives reasons why these old-timers first of all graduated to a life of crime and then why they felt that they had to get involved one last time. He suggests, 'These characters are basically self-destructive because their lives [when younger particularly] had little or no real purpose - and yet they loved their families deeply and in some cases remained married to one woman for their entire life.' It was certainly true of Reader who looked after his wife lovingly through illness and who was devastated when she died.
In the end he views the Hatton Garden Mob as trying 'to work like a business syndicate' as they saw themselves as 'the old executives of crime trying to make one more big bonus before retiring for good.' The sad thing for them was that it didn't quite work out like that for a master crime family who controlled Hatton Garden had one of their men involved who took the majority of the expensive material away with him and left the others to feed off relatively slim pickings. But true to the loyalty of the underworld, those caught revealed nothing -fearing for their lives if they had done so.
It's a fast-moving crime story that is well worth a read.
September 1, 2016
Quite an informative book that went "behind the scenes" of the Hatton Garden raid - without glorifying the raiders. It was interesting to see just how interconnected the various big crimes are (think Brinks-Mat and the Securicor Express robberies) and the way that the ripples flow out from the crime and impact quite a wide range of people.
August 1, 2019
Interesting story. Not well written.
January 20, 2020
While not the most scintillating writing, with a story like this...Whoa! Who cares! The story sells itself. Unbelievable but true. In 2015, a bunch of old codgers pull off an astounding vault break in, and no one is injured! It’s a fascinating look at how the nature of crime has changed since the ‘60s. I had to look pictures of the gang and the damage they did to the vault (holy moly!!). I can’t help but wish the old fellas had a happier ending, but it would be inappropriate for me to think that crime should pay, right?
May 29, 2019
For a topic that seems like it would be fast paced, the last third of this book goes shockingly slow. That being said, it is still an interesting read, that dives into the history of robbery/burglary in the UK as much as it does the actual crime itself. There are a lot of unanswered questions when you finish but that might also be due to the time in which it was published.
May 15, 2021
7/10
April 14, 2023
Educational good page Turner I wanna join the gang.
December 8, 2024
Excellent. Couldn’t put it down.
February 13, 2025
Interesting story, very poorly written. Felt more like I was reading a research paper . . . . . . . a research paper that was very poorly written.
October 26, 2025
Great read..,fascinating story of the old school British criminal
February 9, 2017
Brilliant
Another great read from Wensley Clarkson
A good in depth look into the crime that leave's you guessing who Basil is
Another great read from Wensley Clarkson
A good in depth look into the crime that leave's you guessing who Basil is
July 30, 2016
I enjoyed this book which gave a valuable insight into the Hatton Garden housebreaking. It was well written and personalised the main characters involved. I did feel that it almost glamourised the criminality of the individuals and took an almost sympathetic view given their respective ages. That said this book is well worth a read.
November 17, 2016
This book gives an account of a raid on a safety deposit box vault by a group of elderly criminals.
I thought this book gave a fascinating glimpse into the lives of those involved and the background to this ‘famous’ crime. Some of the facts about the case / squabbles between the villains were very surprising. In places the writing was a bit clunky so my overall rating would be 3.5.
I thought this book gave a fascinating glimpse into the lives of those involved and the background to this ‘famous’ crime. Some of the facts about the case / squabbles between the villains were very surprising. In places the writing was a bit clunky so my overall rating would be 3.5.
August 2, 2016
Who knew a bunch of old guys committing crimes could be so interesting. I had no idea this even happened. and the way the author presents it is flawless. this book had me googling the guys. a very interesting, and almost unbelievable story!
May 24, 2016
Really enjoyed this. Didn't know much of the story but this book has great detail and it's an easy read. Finished it in 2 sittings
January 2, 2020
A great insight into the most daring raid of the 20th century. The most detailed and truest account of what really happened.
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews