Four men who conspired to rob a family with sawn-off shotguns were handed jail terms totalling 32 years at Kingston Crown Court.

Billy Pearce, 21, Omar Hutson, 20, and brothers Devon Lewis, 19, and Dean Lewis, 23, were convicted in September of targeting a house in Boileau Road, Barnes, where the Larkin family were living, last March.

Pearce, from Sutton, and Hutson, from Fulham, were given six years each for their part in the crime, as they were found not guilty of possessing an altered firearm without a certificate and possessing a firearm with intent to cause fear or violence.

The Lewis brothers, also from Fulham, were handed 10-year jail terms by Judge Shani Barnes, as they had been convicted of the firearms offences and pleaded guilty to conspiracy to burglary charges.

During the trial, the court heard evidence from Charlie Larkin, Lawrence Larkin, also known as Lawrence Cosgrave, and their mum Kathy Larkin.

Lawrence Larkin said the men pulled balaclavas over their faces as they approached the house and the door frame was shaking as the men tried to get in.

As police arrived at the scene, three of the four tried to escape.

As the police cornered them in a nearby cul-de-sac, one of the three pointed a gun at them, telling them to back off.

When passing the sentence on Friday, December 21, Judge Barnes said she was very sad that four young men of such potential were standing in front of her, but she had a public duty to show justice for the community.

However, she resisted giving the men indeterminate prison sentences, which she had the power to hand out.

"On March 8 this year, you decided as an abberation, a monstrous, terrifying, ridiculous plan, that you were going to lay siege to an address in Boileau Road," she said.

She told them they were lucky two police officers were in the area which caused them to leave the premises as they were at risk of ruining the rest of their lives had they gained access.

"During the trial I wanted to shout at you What were you thinking?'" she added. "I hope you are ashamed of what you did."

The four were told that the time they had already served would be taken off their sentences and they would be released half-way through on licence.