London jewel robbers wore rubber faces

Make-up artist believed he was transforming them for video

The pair were said to have hired a professional make-up artist to disguise themselves with liquid latex in the hours before they escaped with a £40m-haul from the exclusive Graffs jewellers’ in Mayfair, London.

The 29-year-old make-up artist believed he was transforming them for a pop video and altered their hair colour and skin tone in a four-hour session that cost £450, according to the Sun.

Seized items
Forensic experts seized items including hairbrushes, gowns and banknotes from a make-up studio in Covent Garden, central London, the paper said.

A Metropolitan police spokesman  has declined to comment on this line of inquiry.
On Wednesday, flying squad officers investigating the £40m-robbery arrested a 50-year-old man outside a house in Ilford, east London. He has been released on bail pending further inquiries.

Officers have raided several properties in London and are following up new lines of inquiry after the release of CCTV footage showing two men entering the store in New Bond Street.  The two armed robbers – one white and one black, and both dressed in smart suits – made off with 43 items of jewellery in the heist last Thursday.

They were filmed on CCTV entering the shop. Once inside, they pulled out handguns before snatching expensive items from a cabinet. Dragging a female member of staff outside, they fired a warning shot before releasing her and making their escape initially in a blue BMW that an onlooker caught on mobile phone video.

Other associates
It is thought they were helped by a series of getaway drivers. A second warning shot was fired as they changed vehicles nearby. Police spokesman said: “Following the release of CCTV images of two men, officers are currently following up a number of inquiries.”