Four robbers who subjected a number of sex workers to terrifying knife-point attacks have been jailed.
The men were sentenced at Snaresbrook Crown Court on Friday, 7 February.
The four men had all previously been convicted at the same court in relation to a series of seven robberies against nine female victims carried out in a wide range of locations across the capital over a seven-month period.
Erlandos Vyte, 24 (23.07.95) of Copperfield Road, Chigwell had pleaded guilty on 28 October 2019 to nine counts of robbery, while his three co-defendants were all found guilty by the jury on 6 December 2019 following the conclusion of the six-week trial. He was sentenced to 12-and-half years in jail.
Robertas Zilionas, 21 (29.08.98) of Copperfield Road, Chigwell, was found guilty of five counts and jailed for 14 years
Jospin Ble, 23 (09.06.96) of Knox Road, Newham, was also found guilty of five counts, while Joshua Coke, 21 (04.06.98), of Mountfield Road, Newham, E6, was found guilty of one count.
Ble was sentenced to 12 years' and Coke to 10 years in jail.
The gang of robbers used the same method for all the robberies - Vyte (on all but one occasion) would call up to book an appointment, then when the unsuspecting escort opened the door the other men would force their way in and rob the victim - on two occasions this involved both the two women they found at the address.
The women were subjected to being tied up with items the men came equipped with or found at the premises, and were often threatened with knives, before their cards, money, phones and other personal possessions were stolen. The frightening ordeal they all endured left many of the victims with lasting psychologically damaging effects.
In a victim impact statement read out in court, ‘Crisanta’ described how she and her friend, a fellow escort, who were targeted in the same incident had seen their confidence severely reduced. She recalled how she shook violently and suffered a panic attack as the robbers ransacked their flat - which triggered off more attacks in the following months.
Topic: Four robbers who subjected a number of sex workers to knife-point attacks jailed (Read 908 times)