A gang who masqueraded as police officers to raid the family home of a fund manager fled empty-handed when a panic alarm was activated, a court heard.

Two of the would-be raiders had arrived at the "expensive and substantial" property in Sevenoaks in a private ambulance modified to look like a patrol vehicle.

The passenger, wearing a high-visibility police jacket, approached an intercom at the front of the house and told the occupants they were investigating a disturbance.

But no sooner had they been allowed through the electric gates and into the grounds, they were joined by four masked accomplices armed with what appeared to be a sawn-off shotgun, wearing balaclavas and gloves, and carrying two rucksacks.

The owner, Thomas Hogh, described as a successful, high finance businessman, had been enjoying a peaceful bank holiday Monday with his wife Inge, and their three children, when the men struck at about 9.40pm on May 1, 2017.

He was standing at the front door of his detached house in affluent Wildernesse Avenue to greet the two 'officers' when the rest of gang burst towards him.

A jury at Maidstone Crown Court heard they had been laying in wait in an alleyway at the side of the detached property, having cut a hole in the fence of the neighbouring house just minutes earlier.

But any bid to rob the occupants of cash and 'high value rewards' was thwarted when a terrified Mrs Hogh immediately activated the 'very loud' panic alarm from upstairs before locking herself in a wardrobe.

Disconcerted by the noise, the four masked raiders raced out of the house and back through the hole in the fence, while the two bogus policemen reversed off the driveway.

All six made their escape either to Canterbury or South Ockendon in Essex, the court was told.

The disguised ambulance, the type of Skoda Octavia often used by private ambulance firms, had a sign with the word 'Police' attached to the bonnet and bore false number plates.

It is alleged these were fitted en route to the raid after it arrived on the Kent-side of the Dartford River Crossing from Essex.

The court heard they were then swapped back after 'it all went wrong' but before the ambulance made its return trip through the tunnel.

Two days later it was found burnt out on farmland in Nottinghamshire.

On trial accused of conspiracy to rob and possessing an imitation firearm with intent are Nicholas Hamill, 35, Malcolm Maxted, 45, and Joseph Mezen, 28.

Hamill, of Carlton Hill, Herne Bay, is the owner of a medical supplies firm and was said to run a company called Southern England Ambulance Service.

The prosecution allege he played an 'organisational' role and was involved in 'putting the plan together' in 2017.

Maxted, of Daiglen Drive, South Ockendon, is an ambulance driver instructor. He admits collecting the vehicle on the day of the robbery attempt from Hamill's business in Canterbury and driving it to his home in Essex.

But it is alleged he then drove it as part of the raid attempt before taking it north to Nottinghamshire where he had a pre-arranged training course the following day.

A fourth man, Ronnie Mead, 30, of Lucerne Drive, Seasalter, denies assisting an offender by setting fire to the ambulance.

It is alleged he also drove Maxted's personal car, a Renault Clio, to Nottinghamshire, picked up the ambulance and set it alight.

The court heard Mead had also been 'tasked and trusted' by the gang to return to Sevenoaks and retrieve the police sign which had fallen off the bonnet as they fled.

A fifth man, John Moys, also 45, of Old Tree, Hoath, near Canterbury, has pleaded guilty to conspiracy to rob and the imitation firearm offence.

He was one of those at the house that night, allegedly with Hamill, Maxted and Mezen.

It is also alleged that Hamill purchased the ambulance with Moys, using a fictitious name and business address, on March 21 that year.

Prosecutor Christopher May said those involved in the robbery plot went 'to considerable effort'.

"The prosecution suggest the Hoghs were targeted by a robbery gang who thought that they would be able to steal cash and or other property from them to a high value," he told the court.

"Thinking that there would be potentially high rewards, a great deal of planning went into this.

"Thinking that there would be potentially high rewards, a great deal of planning went into this" - prosecutor Christopher May

"Masquerading as police officers to try to gain entry through the external gates, the use of an ambulance disguised as a police car to gain the confidence of the occupiers, putting that vehicle on false number plates to make it hard to identify, the wearing of masks, and even carrying a weapon that had all the appearance of being a sawn-off shotgun, a very frightening article.

"But in fact what happened was that their plan was thwarted because when they managed to get through the front door, the lady of the house, Mrs Hogh, who was upstairs, immediately sounded the alarm when she realised the attackers were in the house.

"It was very loud, it clearly panicked them, and the gang fled empty-handed."

Evidence against the men is said to come from CCTV footage, mobile phone data and ANPR cameras.

Cameras at the Hoghs' home showed the four masked men running away from the front door and back down the side of the detached house.

They initially over-shot the hole in the fence before rapidly retracing their steps to find it and escape into the grounds of the neighbouring house.

Other CCTV footage from a property opposite showed what the prosecution allege was three of the men, dressed in dark clothing, arriving on foot just under an hour before the raid to assess whether it was 'a good time to attack'.

Hamill denies any involvement while Maxted claims that on the night of the failed robbery, the ambulance was collected from his home by others before being returned.

The jury was told that Mezen, of Gosselin Street, Whitstable, admitted after his arrest that he had been at the house, but claimed the raid was 'a put-up job' and carried out with the homeowners' knowledge.

However, his account, said the prosecutor, was a 'convoluted and utterly implausible' explanation.

"When you consider the sheer scale and detail of the planning that had gone into this attempted robbery, the lengths people had gone to to try to make this work, it simply doesn't make sense," added Mr May.

"The Hogh family were enjoying a peaceful bank holiday Monday at home, with their children, one of whom had exams starting the next day.

"The account put forward by Jimmy Mezen is far-fetched in the extreme."

The trial continues and is expected to last five weeks.