Ronald Easterbrook

Ronald Leonard Easterbrook (11 May 1931 – 10 May 2009) was a convicted armed robber and career criminal. Easterbrook was best known for a hunger strike in November 1987, which he did in protest after being convicted of armed robbery in Woolwich, London. Farquhar writes how he met Ron Easterbrook whilst at the borstal. Farquhar was working in the Army Cadet Officer's club. When he was tidying up at the end of the day, he would take any leftover cakes to Easterbrook, who was working as a stoker in the boiler room.

The Evening Times reports in a later story regarding three counts of breaking and entering. One of these alleged that Easterbrook broke into the Artillery Museum, which at the time was located at the Rotunda in Woolwich, and stole six firearms valued at £81 that were the property of the Queen.

The Glasgow Herald reports a conviction for receiving stolen goods, a stolen hat and overcoat.

An article in Police Review reports Easterbrook as having been convicted for assaulting a policeman with a lead-loaded rubber hose, and later for stabbing a man with a carving knife.

Bickley burglary

Easterbrook's first conviction for armed robbery came in 1958, whilst he was working as a bricklayer and living in Deptford, London.

The Woolwich robbery

In November 1987, Easterbrook was involved in the robbery of wages from a supermarket in Woolwich, London. He was with a second armed robber and a getaway driver. The robbery itself was carried out by the second robber, entering the store and holding a loaded revolver to the shop assistant's head, before demanding they hand over a cash bag containing £10,400. Ron Easterbrook, who was also armed with a revolver, kept watch outside. Following the robbery both men fled the scene in the getaway car, and drove to a point approximately a mile away, where they planned to change vehicles.

The police, who had been tipped off about the robbery, were lying in wait at the planned second point to ambush.