A Cricklewood thief who violently stole luxury watches from unsuspecting people has been jailed along with seven fellow gang members.

Mohammed Chaab, 20, of Handley Grove , Cricklewood, was handed an eight year term after pleading guilty to eleven offences.

The spree of 14 robberies took place between May and November 2017 in the West End, Mayfair and Knightsbridge.

Gang members grabbed some victims round the neck and threw them to the floor often kicking and punching them before ripping the watches from their wrists..

In total, the gang stole watches with a combined value of £280,000 and were jailed for a total of 54 years at Isleworth Crown Court on Tuesday.

The court heard they intimidated, threatened and seriously assaulted members of the public and also carried out an aggravated burglary in a residential property, bringing the total number of incidents to 15.

Not all members of the gang were involved in each incident.

Police Serg Annie Yau, who led the investigation, said: “There was a shocking level of violence used in a number of the incidents with some victims being grabbed around the neck and thrown to the floor, often being kicked and punched when on the ground and watches ripped from wrists.

“They were all intimidated and threatened by these despicable individuals whose sole objective was to steal the high value items for their own greed.

“While the attacks were mostly at night, one took place in broad daylight when some of the gang mistook a cheap Rolex copy for the real thing. They also attacked a pensioner and made threats to stab some of the victims.

“One incident saw members of the gang storm into a house in Knightsbridge after befriending the residents on their way home after a night out. They assaulted them with their fists and a belt buckle. While they didn’t manage to steal anything on the first occasion, the gang then returned at around 5:20am, forcing their way in and threatening the victims with bottles and a knife. They also used this to slash at doors, before stealing two watches.

“This incident alone would have been absolutely terrifying, and left the victims and other occupants having to barricade themselves into their bedrooms.

Det Serg Holyhead, who oversaw the operation, added: “The defendants were caught through detailed and intelligence-led police work, starting with the basics, including extensive CCTV camera trawls by colleagues at Westminster CID.

“I am pleased we’ve had such a significant result and would like to thank the victims for their patience and co-operation as we carried out our enquiries.”

All sentences are to be served concurrently with the time to be served listed below.

The other gang members who pleaded guilty are:

Abdelhakim Naili, 19, of Westfields Road, Ealing, seven years and two months for nine offences

Ziyad Al-Daher, 28, of Brockley Road, Lewisham, 10 years six months for nine offences. He was sentenced as a dangerous offender and subject to approval of the parole board with a 5 year extension

Serewo Gwanzura, 23, Old Kent Road, Southwark, 11 years for three offences.

Khalid Abdullah, 31, High Street, Croydon, four years for two offences.

Damien Pates, 21, of Rabournmead Drive, Northolt, was sentenced for one offence as he is already serving nine years for the aggravated burglary in Knightsbridge. He was given an additional two and a half years to be served consecutively.

An 18-year-old sentenced was sentenced as a youth to five and a half years for four offences.

Khaled Guehis, 25, of Loveridge Road, Camden, five years and three months for three offences

+ A ninth member of the group, Tabarak Ali, 25, of Charters Close, Gypsy Hill, was sentenced to four months in prison at an earlier hearing at the same court on December 12.