Colombian cashpoint gang member who stole £64,000 from elderly victims is deported after serving just part of his sentence

Armet Cortes, 55, was deported from the UK after serving only part of a three-year, eight-month sentence. The Home Office confirmed that his fellow gang member Willmer Guzman, 63, had been deported earlier in the year. Between them, they targeted lone women and elderly people across Sunderland, Newcastle, Hexham, Scarborough and London, stealing £64,000 from 14 victims through elaborate distraction fraud. One victim had to abandon her retirement plans and return to work after her savings were taken.

In one case, the gang followed a woman onto a bus after she withdrew £10,000; one member then feigned a fall, giving accomplices the opportunity to enter her home and steal the cash.

Judge Andrew Smith said the gang deliberately chose victims who were 'unlikely to fight back or challenge' them.

One victim lost £15,000 after thieves scattered coins at her feet and enquired whether the money was hers — a ruse that allowed them to rummage through her handbag while her attention was diverted.