Thieves ram-raid stately home to steal a safe stuffed with hundreds of thousands of pounds worth of jewellery ahead of an antiques fair Gang burst through gates in two cars on Sunday and headed straight for the safe Raid at the property in West Sussex was well planned and took place at 3.30am The haul, thought to include gold and jewels, was to go on show later that dayBy Neal Sears and Rebecca Camber for the Daily Mail Published: 00:07 BST, 15 May 2019 | Updated: 00:07 BST, 15 May 2019 Viewcomments Thieves ram-raided the grounds of a stately home to steal gems going on display at an antiques show. In a meticulously planned night-time heist, they burst through the gates of Petworth House using two vehicles and raced towards a marquee holding a safe stuffed with hundreds of thousands of pounds of jewels. They loaded the safe on to a trailer and made their escape before Sussex Police could arrive. Thieves smashed through the gates of Petworth House (above) using two vehicles and headed straight for a marquee holding a safe stuffed with hundreds of thousands of pounds of jewels The gems had been due to go on show later that day at the Petworth Park Antiques & Fine Art Fair. A source claimed a specific trader was targeted in the raid at 3.30am on Sunday. 'They had a snatch and go plan and they were away within just a few minutes,' said the source. 'It is clear the gang were a professional outfit and had one target in mind. This wasn't a random incident, they sped across the park with a clear destination and, when they got to the marquee, they headed straight for a particular trader's stall. 'At this stage, we are not revealing the contents of the safe – other than to say it was high-value jewellery and cash.' Adam Hastie, the general manager of Petworth, said the thieves had pierced a ring of steel. He added: 'Security were able to see the vehicle coming towards them and called the police but it was too late. 'We're expecting the police to take it very seriously as there seems to have been a significant amount of jewellery involved. We host several community events throughout the year and the fair is a regular.' Sussex Police appealed for help in catching the thieves, who used a sports utility vehicle and a pick-up truck towing a trailer to batter through the gates at an entrance off the A283 London Road. Detective Sergeant Ali Hutchings said: 'We would also like to hear from anyone who is offered jewellery in suspicious circumstances or who may have relevant closed-circuit television or dash-cam footage from the Petworth area.' Another source said that several dealers had gold, silver and jewellery in the safe – and losses could run to hundreds of thousands of pounds. The fair typically hosts around 50 exhibitors. Built in the 17th century, Petworth House and its park, which was designed by Capability Brown, were given to the National Trust in 1947. Lord Egremont, whose family had owned the property, has an agreement to live in part of it and to help run the estate. Works by van Dyck, Turner, Reynolds and Gainsborough are on show inside. Share or comment on this article: All rights reserved for this news site dailymail and under his responsibility