WATCH: Jail for cash machine raiders who tore ATMs from shops and hospitals

Five men have now been jailed over the raids which saw £250,000 taken from ATMs torn from walls using straps attached to vehicles on cloned plates.

Hospitals, railway stations, shops and cafes were all targeted, with footage released by police showing how the gang would scope out their targets before returning at night wearing hoodies and gloves.

In one clip the crooks can be seen wheeling a machine along a corridor in the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham while bowing their heads to avoid being identified on CCTV.

WATCH the footage here:

And in another, footage from Trent Valley Post Office in Lichfield shows how the group ripped the shop's cash machine out, knocking shelves over and causing major damage to the front door in the process.

Other targets included the Midlands Arts Centre in Cannon Hill Park, Birmingham, where they cut bollards out to access the building, Warwick Hospital and a Spar in Tamworth where they cut their way in.

In total 11 burglaries and attempted burglaries were carried out between March 2018 and January 2019 for which the gang were locked up for a combined 31 years and nine months today.

GALLERY of cash machine gang:

Their downfall began when they were forced to abandon a Transit van they were using as a getaway vehicle after a police chase.

Forensic tests on that along with fingerprints left on a trolley dumped at a crime scene helped police identify suspects, while ringleader Craig Matthews left his DNA on a piece of tape used to cover cameras in Lichfield.

Matthews was also forensically linked to a registration plate on one of the vans, while CCTV showed him examining a cash machine the gang later targeted at Rugby railway station.

The five members were sentenced at Birmingham Crown Court on Tuesday.

• Craig Matthews, aged 42, of Benmore Avenue in Edgbaston, was jailed for eight years and seven months.

• David Bradley, aged 28, of Wappenbury Road, Wood End in Coventry, was given five years.

• Kenneth Bourne, aged 38, of Nuneaton Road in Fillongley, Warwickshire, was jailed for six years.

• Shane Stajsavlijevic, aged 36, of Hermes Crescent, Henley Green in Coventry, was jailed for seven years and two months.

• Charlie Ward, aged 27 of Pepys Corner, Tile Hill in Coventry, was handed five years.

DCI Annie Miller from West Midlands Police, who oversaw the operation, said: “This was sophisticated organised crime which showed a huge amount of planning.

“While no one was hurt during the spree, the gang left a trail of destruction which left victims facing huge bills.

“Thanks to great police work, we were able to build up a detailed picture of the gang, their vehicles, reconnaissance and movements.

“We’re continuing to work with the cash machine industry to help increase security to reduce the risk of them being targeted by criminals in this way in the future."

Marc Terry, international managing director for Cardtronics, which owned some of the cash machines targeted, added: “Congratulations and our thanks go to West Midlands Police for their excellent work in helping us to protect access to cash for local and rural communities, who rely on ATMs for basic banking services.

"Our work does not stop here − we are fighting to protect access to cash across the whole of the UK and will not rest until ATM crime is eradicated and ceases to be a threat to communities and their residents.

"Those considering an attack should think again, as they will be caught and sent to jail for a very long time."