Attempted extortion against British supermarket chain Tesco in Bournemouth, England
The Tesco bomb campaign led to one of Dorset Police's largest covert operations, ending in a 16-year sentence for blackmailer Robert Dyer.
Key Facts
- Campaign start
- August 2000
- Suspect arrested
- February 2001
- Verdict
- Guilty on nine counts of blackmail, May 2001
- Original sentence
- 16 years' imprisonment
- Sentence on appeal
- Reduced to 12 years
- Blackmailer's pseudonym
- Sally
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
Robert Edward Dyer, using the pseudonym 'Sally', sought to extort Tesco by demanding specially modified Clubcards that could be used to withdraw cash from ATMs, threatening harm to customers if his demands were not met. Starting in August 2000, he sent threatening letters to Tesco stores in Bournemouth, escalating to letter bombs and pipe bomb threats over several months.
Dyer sent letter bombs—one of which injured a recipient—and threatened to plant pipe bombs in Tesco stores, prompting Dorset Police to mount a major covert surveillance operation. Tesco even began producing the demanded modified Clubcards but could not meet Dyer's deadline. Police traced several extortion letters to a specific postbox, identified Dyer, and arrested him in February 2001.
Dyer was found guilty in May 2001 of nine counts of blackmail and one of common assault, and sentenced to 16 years' imprisonment on 12 June 2001, later reduced to 12 years on appeal. The campaign became a reference point for subsequent extortion attempts against supermarkets and other businesses, with media frequently comparing later incidents to Dyer's methods.