Fraudster couple conspire to ‘claim insurance on staged £350k raid’ hiring associates to burgle home

A wealthy businesswoman is on trial accused of conspiring with her boyfriend over a £350,000 burglary at her townhouse in an alleged insurance fraud plot.

Emma O’Shea, 46, denies charges of conspiracy to commit fraud, perverting the course of justice and attempted intimidation.

Prosecutors allege her boyfriend Dean Ryan, 41, secretly arranged for associates to raid her £900,000 Portsmouth home while the couple were out in March 2022.

Portsmouth Crown Court heard that jewellery, designer handbags and cash worth approximately £350,000 were taken from the property by Gary Cleeve during an eight-minute raid.

Prosecutor Dale Sullivan told the court that Cleeve knew exactly what to take and where to find the safe key, suggesting it was “a targeted burglary”.

The raid was captured on O’Shea’s Ring doorbell, showing a man in high-visibility clothing entering the property.

Ryan allegedly searched online for the value of stolen Tanzanite diamonds the following evening.

Because the insurance company required forced entry for a payout, the couple allegedly agreed to stage damage after the burglary.

Housekeeper Wioletta Krol discovered two ladders against the back wall and an open, unbroken dressing-room window immediately after the raid.

“Subsequently, Wioletta Krol heard Dean Ryan and Emma O’Shea speaking about the window being open and agreeing they would smash it so it would look better for the insurance company,” prosecutor Sullivan told the court.

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The following day, Krol found the window had been smashed.

When Ryan was due to stand trial in July 2023, O’Shea allegedly attempted to derail proceedings by fleeing to Barbados.

The court heard she told a “flat out lie” to authorities, claiming she was “in the South Pacific” when served with a witness summons.

Prosecutors say O’Shea also tried to intimidate her housekeeper Krol, messaging her daughter: “Tell your family to f*** off! You won’t get another penny.”

The trial had to be aborted due to O’Shea’s absence.

O’Shea was arrested at Heathrow airport on August 7, 2023, after returning to the UK.

Her mother Sarah O’Shea, 69, is also accused of perverting the course of justice by encouraging her daughter to remain in the Caribbean during the trial.

Prosecutors told the court that O’Shea’s mother had been communicating with Ryan while he was in custody, relaying information to her daughter in Barbados.

Both women deny the charges against them.

Ryan’s associates Matthew Lowden, 33, and Gary Cleeve, 45, both deny conspiracy to commit burglary of a dwelling.

The court heard Lowden acted as the getaway driver, waiting in a van while Cleeve carried out the raid.

The trial continues.