Six men have been sentenced following a high value burglary on the outskirts of Chester.

Mitchell Edge, Marley Beales, Mark Higgins, Simon Upton, Christopher Cope and Jobe Cope appeared at Chester Crown Court on Tuesday 2 September, where they were sentenced to more than 11 years in prison.

All six men had earlier pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit a burglary and conspiracy to steal a motor vehicle.

Shortly after 2am on Friday 16 August 2024, police received a report of a suspicious man in a White Citroen Relay van on Devis Road, Knutsford.

As officers arrived at the scene, a man was witnessed fleeing the area on foot.

Police attempted to locate the man but were unable to find him. However, after reviewing dash cam footage from the police car he was identified as Higgins.

The Citroen van was located nearby and when searching the vehicle officers located £250,000 worth of counterfeit cigarettes which had been stolen during a burglary at a premises on the outskirts of Chester.

A gang of men had entered the address by forcing their way in with crowbars and wearing balaclavas to hide their identity.

One of the gang was carrying a crowbar and threats were made to the occupants inside who were instructed not to inform the police.

£250,000 worth of counterfeit cigarettes had been stolen during a burglary at a premises on the outskirts of Chester (Image via: Cheshire Constabulary)

Following the discovery, an investigation was launched by detectives from Chester Proactive CID and officers recovered hours' worth of CCTV and used ANPR data from the road network.

During their enquiries, officers recovered evidence which showed that Upton had been conducting surveillance on the stolen vehicle the day before the burglary took place.

Evidence showed that he had updated the gang of the vehicle's whereabouts, demonstrating that the incident was targeted and involved a high level of planning.

After conducting the surveillance, Upton returned to Nottingham, while the rest of the gang travelled up to Cheshire on Thursday 15 August to execute the burglary.

The gang were initially successful and managed to steal the van, but their plan began to fall apart after the report from the good Samaritan in Knutsford.

Evidence recovered by detectives also showed that after fleeing officers in Knutsford, Upton was contacted and returned to Cheshire to collect Higgins and the pair returned to Nottingham.

While on route, they stopped at a service station in Staffordshire, from where officers recovered CCTV footage of Higgins, which showed him wearing footwear that matched a footwear mark recovered from the stolen vehicle.

Further forensic evidence also showed Higgins had driven the vehicle from the scene of the burglary.

CCTV footage showed Higgins fleeing officers in Knutsford, before stopping at a service station in Staffordshire on his way back to Nottingham

From the review of key CCTV and extensive enquiries in Cheshire and Nottinghamshire, officers were also able to identify that Edge, Beale, Upton, Christopher Cope and Jobe Cope were also involved in the burglary.

Cell-site data and mobile phone analysis also linked all six offenders to the incident.

After gathering a catalogue of evidence, officers from Cheshire Police travelled to Nottingham on Wednesday 25 September 2025, where they conducted a series of warrants at the suspects' homes.

Higgins, Beale, Upton, Christopher Cope and Jobe Cope were all arrested that day and transported to Cheshire where they were later charged in connection to the incident.

Edge was not present at the time of the raid, but he was later arrested on Sunday 13 October after being found at an address in Nottingham.

Following the sentencing, Detective Constable Richard Connolley said: "I welcome the sentences handed out by the court today and I hope that this case acts as a warning to others who are looking to come to Cheshire to commit crime.

"During our investigation it was clear that this was a carefully planned incident; the gang travelled to Cheshire that night to target the address on the outskirts of Chester.

"However, their audacious plan began to fall apart thanks to a good Samaritan in Knutsford.

"I hope that the conclusion of this case will provide some closure for the victims, and I would like to take this as an opportunity to thank the good Samaritan for their assistance."

Sentences handed to the defendants included:

• Mitchell Edge, 23, of Green Acre, Edwalton - 27 months in prison

• Mark Higgins, 23, of Cherhill Close, Nottingham - 27 months in prison

• Simon Upton, 38, of Eltham Drive, Nottingham - 27 months in prison

• Christopher Cope, 24, of Rectory Close, Sutton Bonnington - 27 months in prison

• Jobe Cope, 29, of Great Hoggett Drive, Chilwell - 27 months in prison

• Marley Beales, 24, of Cherhill Close, Nottingham - 24 months suspended