ROBBERS who raided Mark Cavendish's home were caught after police tracked their high-tech getaway car, a court heard today.
The group had allegedly fled the Essex mansion in a Mercedes E220, which has a built-in SIM card to access the internet.
As a result, police were able to trace the motor's movements and place it at Cavendish's home at the time of the raid, it was said.
Jurors were told the car is linked to Romario Henry, 31, and Oludewa Okorosobo, 28, who are accused of carrying out the "planned invasion".
Prosecutor Edward Renvoize told Chelmsford Crown Court: “Two vehicles were used during the robbery, a Mercedes and a Mitsubishi.
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“The Mercedes has a feature of importance - it is fitted with a SIM card, so it uses cell sites in the same way as a mobile phone.
“We can see that between 1.35am and 2.35am on the night of the robbery, the car made contact with a cell site close to the home of Mr and Mrs Cavendish.”
Henry was seen clambering into the Mercedes with two others - including one figure who had a noticeable limp like his co-accused - a few days before the raid, it was said.
Jurors also heard how mobile records show the pair called each other and other suspected gang members on the night of the burglary.
The court heard previously how Olympic silver medallist Mark and wife Peta hid their three-year-old son under a duvet as the masked raiders broke in.
The gang allegedly threatened to stab the couple before making off with two Richard Mille watches, worth £400,000 and £300,000.
Mark, who was recovering from injuries at the time, was "jumped on" by some of the intruders as an alarm went off, jurors heard.
Henry, 31, of Lewisham, and Oludewa Okorosobo, of Camberwell, deny two counts of robbery.
Ali Sesay, 28, whose DNA was matched to Peta's phone, has already pleaded guilty to robbery.
The trial continues.
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