Tamara Ecclestone burglary: man admits full role in £ 26 million celebrity robberies

An Italian man has pleaded guilty to all charges relating to a £ 26 million series of burglaries that targeted luxury homes of celebrities in west London.

Jugoslav Jovanovic previously admitted conspiring to rob the homes of Frank Lampard, F1 heir Tamara Ecclestone and the family of the late Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha, in 2019.

Jovanovic was to be tried in Isleworth Crown Court for conspiracy to launder stolen property outside the UK.

Now he has changed his guilty plea.

The Crown Prosecution Service said the £ 25 million burglary alone at Ms. Ecclestone’s Kensington mansion was deemed the largest of its kind in British legal history.

Andrew Hadik said the international gang of jewelry thieves took “irreplaceable objects of sentimental value that have never been seen again”.

He added: “Jovanovic used his loot to shop at Harrods and even opened a store loyalty card.”

It was previously heard in court that on November 30, 2019, Jovanovic, along with an accomplice named Daniel Vukovic, traveled to London Stansted from Stockholm and then established a hotel base in Orpington.

The next day the couple robbed Lampard and his wife Christine’s house in west London while the couple were away. was told at the court.

Prosecutors said an intruder alarm was triggered, but more than £ 50,000 worth of items were stolen.

Then, on 10 December, a Knightsbridge property belonging to the late billionaire owner of Leicester City, Mr Srivaddhanaprabha, was burgled.

Srivaddhanaprabha died in a helicopter crash outside King Power Stadium in October 2018, and his family said the house has remained intact since his death.

The court heard that Jovanovic, Vukovic and two other Italians – Alessandro Donati and Alessandro Maltese – ransacked the house taking seven Patek Philippe watches, a Tag Heuer smartwatch and around € 400,000 in cash.

The following day, the group dined at an expensive sushi restaurant near Harrods and had lunch with £ 760 champagne and sashimi, the court heard.

Finally, on December 13, Vukovic, Maltese and Donati carried out one of the largest burglaries in British legal history, the prosecution said.

Armed with screwdrivers, they targeted the palatial home F1 heiress Ms Ecclestone shares with her husband Jay Rutland – across from Kensington Palace, the court was told.

Kensington Palace Gardens is one of the most expensive streets in the world, has a presence of armed guards and is home to the Russian, French and Israeli embassies.

Jovanovic remained “the clock” down the street outside a Chinese restaurant.

He left the UK aboard an AirItalia flight from London City Airport to Milan Linate Airport on December 18, the court heard.

The 24-year-old, who lived in Milan, was extradited from Italy to the UK in April to face legal proceedings.

The Italian citizens Donati, 44, and Maltese, 45, both pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit burglary.

All three will be sentenced on November 15 and have been remanded in custody.

Mr. Vukovic 40, has never been located and is believed to be in the Serbian capital Belgrade.

Det Con Andrew Payne said specialized police looked at 2,000 hours of video footage.

He added: “We also recognize that for those targeted, it is not simply a matter of having their assets stolen.

“Being the victim of a theft, whoever you are, is traumatic and upsetting and everyone should have the right to feel safe in their own homes.”