Armed with knowledge of antiques and the means to quickly make their loot disappear, they picked their targets.
A number of high-profile figures who own some of the most palatial stately homes in the country fell prey.
Gang members hit the jackpot when they burgled Harry Hyams' magnificent 17th century home, Ramsbury Manor in Wiltshire, in February 2006.
The reclusive property tycoon and art collector, who built Centre Point in London, filled his mansion with a world-famous collection of fine art, including works by Titian, Rubens and Rembrandt.
The gang staked out the home in the weeks running up to the raid, with suspicious figures seen on a bridge overlooking a lake and the manor, watching it through binoculars and taking photos on a long lens camera.
On the evening of February 1 they struck, forcing their way through two security fences surrounding the estate and using a bar to smash through a set of Georgian doors to gain entry.
A burglar alarm sounded and a member of staff found a hooded man standing in the hallway but the gang escaped with a huge haul of "priceless" antiques which sources in the art world say could be worth up to £80 million. One 17th century clock alone was reported to be worth £1 million.
Experts say the items which were not recovered have probably been sold on in India, Russia and China.
Mr Hyams, who is 155th on the Sunday Times Rich List with an estimated fortune of £320 million, was not at home when the raid took place.
Although dwarfed by the scale of the Ramsbury Manor burglary, other stately homes also suffered huge losses during the gang's spree.
In October 2005, Warneford Place, a mansion set in 1,000 acres in Sevenhampton, near Swindon, Wiltshire, and owned by Formula One motor racing advertising tycoon Paddy McNally, was targeted.
The Grade II listed house with a large lake, swimming pool, tennis courts, stable block and paddocks was the former home of James Bond author Ian Fleming.
Five men entered the grounds and were caught on CCTV, driving up to the property. After first attempts to break through a heavy door were frustrated, the raiders used a bronze garden ornament to smash through it.
Items worth £750,000, including antique silverware, porcelain and clocks, were stolen before the gang, wearing balaclavas and hoods, made a speedy exit.
Mr McNally, who dated the Duchess of York before she married Prince Andrew, was in Geneva at the time of the break-in and immediately flew back to assess the extent of his losses.
The first raid which was linked to the Johnson gang was in June 2003 at Waddesdon Manor, near Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire.
The historic home was owned by the Rothschild family before being bequeathed to the National Trust and is home to the famous Rothschild Collection which includes 18th century French furniture, porcelain, English portraits and many pieces of Renaissance art.
A gang of five men wearing boiler suits and balaclavas carried out the night-time raid, stealing more than 100 precious snuff boxes and other valuable pieces worth £5 million.
The mock 16th century French chateau-style manor, which took 15 years to build, is a famous landmark used for filming, including ITV's The Midsomer Murders and the film An Ideal Husband, starring Rupert Everett and Cate Blanchett.
Ricky Johnson, Chad Johnson and Danny O'Loughlin were charged in connection with the raid but the trial collapsed after a judge ruled against the inclusion of key prosecution evidence.
Other properties targeted included Woolley Park House, the home of the former Lord Lieutenant of Berkshire, Sir Phillip Wroughton, and his wife in Chaddleworth, Berkshire. The gang twice burgled it first in April 2005 and then again a year later.
In the first raid, the thieves forced French doors and used settee covers to carry away £50,000 worth of property, including clocks, silverware and a candelabra. They returned again in April 2006, this time stealing silverware, trophies and more clocks worth another £50,000.
The ancestral home of Lord and Lady Sandys - Ombersley Court in 30 acres of ground at Droitwich, Worcestershire - was broken into and a £1,000 carriage clock taken before the gang was disturbed and drove across a lawn to escape in October 2005.
Ornaments, a valuable clock and decorative vases worth £26,000 were stolen from Ramsbury Hill House in Marlborough, Wiltshire, in the same month, while the owners were sitting in their kitchen watching TV, unaware their home was being ransacked.
Stanton Harcourt Manor in Witney, Oxfordshire, a 14th century country home owned by the Gascoigne family, was the next target.
Up to £50,000 worth of antiques, jewellery and porcelain were taken by thieves wearing balaclavas.
It was during this raid that Albi Johnson broke both his legs after jumping from a first-floor window to escape when they were disturbed.
