Two men and a woman are starting jail sentences totalling 16-and-a-half years following an attack on a man with an axe and a sledgehammer in Clacton, branded by police as a “terrifying ordeal”.
At Chelmsford Crown Court yesterday Amadu Gbla, 35, of Trafalgar Road, Clacton, received six years, Steven Wilson, 30, of no fixed address, received six-and-a-half years, and Angela Holland, 42, formerly of Burrs Road, Clacton, received four years for aggravated burglary and taking a motor vehicle without consent.
Holland and Wilson were found guilty of both offences following a trial at the same court on Wednesday, September 12.
Gbla was found guilty of taking a motor vehicle without consent following the trial but admitted the aggravated burglary on Wednesday, February 28.
Between 4am and 6am on Friday, December 8, Gbla and Wilson threw an object through the window of a property in Marine Parade East and threatened a man inside with weapons.
They demanded items including the victims PIN number and while inside they struck the man in the head, occasionally hitting him with the handle of the axe.
Gbla and Wilson drove off in the man’s car taking electrical and audio equipment, cash and a wallet.
The victim suffered cuts and bruises and he later called police.
Officers at Essex Police later discovered that Gbla and Wilson were associates of Holland, who was known to the victim and was seen in the area of the property at around 1.30am that day.
All three were arrested and later charged.
Investigating officer DC Richard English, of Clacton CID, said: “Gbla and Wilson subjected the man to a terrifying ordeal while holding an axe and sledgehammer.
“They searched the property looking for any possessions they could escape with before driving off with the man’s car. Fortunately the victim was not seriously injured.
“Holland played a key role in the crime and without her, Gbla and Wilson may not have been at that house that day.
“They have been sent to prison where they will have time to think about the consequences of their actions,” he added.
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