Richmond: Co-owner denies thinking £1.4m theft was an inside job

Earlier in the day the court heard 247 Kettles had received a warning from police in February 2024 that it might be at risk of a robbery, and that Connor Thornton and fellow owner Joe Riley were in New York when the robbery took place.

None of the watches stolen in the robbery were insured, despite a theft taking place at the business three years earlier, jurors were told.

Tyrone Smith KC, defending Mr Kunu, said the shop’s owners held two meetings with Mr White the day after the robbery.

Answering questions from from behind a screen, Mr Thornton said Mr White was asked why he let people into the shop who “looked shady” and quizzed about why he did not press the alarm button or call the police sooner.

Mr Smith said: “He was accused of being involved, wasn’t he?”

Mr Thornton said: “No.”

Mr Smith said: “You were at a loss to understand why he acted the way that he did, and the only conclusion you could draw was that this was an inside job, and you told him as much, didn’t you?”

“No,” the co-owner replied.

Mr Smith told jurors that CCTV of the second meeting, held in the store office, was no longer available and had not been seen by anyone, including the police.

Asked if someone had removed the hard drives from the store’s CCTV, Mr Thornton said: “Both boxes were replaced after the incident.”