Lindell Angell, 32 [17.07.90] of Amhurst Road, Hackney was sentenced to nine-and-a-half years in prison for robbery and possessing criminal property at Southwark Crown Court on Friday, 20 January.
On Friday, 21 January 2022, Angell had planned to steal a victim’s Patek Phillipe watch, valued at approximately £145,000.
Angell befriended the 51-year-old victim on the Strand, central London, engaging with him and convincing him to go to a nearby bar.
The pair had drinks for two hours and swapped phone numbers before leaving to head home. Angell convinced the victim to head down a dark side street towards Embankment Tube, where he then launched an unprovoked and violent attack on the victim, placing him in a chokehold and repeatedly punching him until he fell unconscious.
At this point Angell removed the victim’s high value watch from his wrist, and ran off. A member of the public found the victim and called the London Ambulance Service. The victim was unconscious for several minutes and suffered facial fractures.
CCTV imagery and phone work were used to identify Angell, who was then the subject of a manhunt by the Proactive Robbery Team.
He was actively evading police but, on Monday, 6 February, the team located and arrested Angell in a hotel room in Euston Road, NW1.
Further searches located a secure lock-up, hired out six days after the offence, where a large amount of cash was located and seized under the Proceeds of Crime Act.
Detective Constable Gemma Oganian, who led the investigation, said: “This was a brutal robbery which not only resulted in serious physical harm, but many months after the offence, the victim continues to recover from the psychological trauma.
“People should be able to walk the streets of London and not fear this type of crime. We are doing everything in our power to ensure our streets our safe, and want to strongly reaffirm this to the public we serve. We will proactively investigate and seek tough sentences for offenders like Angell”.
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Anyone who sees a robbery taking place or who has just been robbed should call 999 immediately.
We would also encourage people to:
- Stay aware of your surroundings and pay attention to who is around you
- Keep valuables such as mobile phones, watches and cash out of sight
- Plan your route home
- More advice can be found at: https://www.met.police.uk/cp/crime-prevention/protect-yourself-from-crime/mugging-street-robbery
