A brave mum fought off a knife-wielding paedophile after he tried to rob her car which had her little girl inside.
Duncan Johnson, 41, was jailed for six years after grabbing Natalie Grimes by the throat, holding a blade above her head and demanding her car keys at an Asda store in Walton, Liverpool, at around 11.30am on Sunday, March 15.
The convicted sex offender told the mum ‘I will f***ing kill you’ and slashed her coat as she attempted to protect herself outside the shop, which is just off Utting Avenue.
Johnson fled after the heroic mum refused to hand over the keys, fearing he would take her seven-year-old daughter.
However, he was chased and tackled by two men who had spotted his weapon, Liverpool Echo reports.
Coronavirus latest news and updates
- Visit our live blog for the latest updates: Coronavirus news live
- Read all new and breaking stories on our Covid-19 news page
- The latest coronavirus symptoms explained
- Who needs to go to work, who needs to stay at home and who is classed as a key worker?
The knifeman, who has 30 previous convictions for 128 offences and was on licence, was held by the vigilantes until police arrived to arrest him.
CCTV footage played at Liverpool Crown Court showed how Johnson had walked up and down, before attacking the innocent mother.
However, the paedophile, from Northwood, Kirkby, said in police interviews he was chased for no reason so had tried to hide.
He also alleged he had been beaten up and hit with a bar by the witnesses.
Johnson lied to police after being selected in an identity parade, before finally admitting attempted robbery and possession of an offensive weapon.
The sex offender was previously jailed for nine years for a 2008 robbery, but his criminal record began with an arson in 1991 and he was also convicted of possessing an offensive weapon in 1995.
He was locked up for six years in 2015 for causing or inciting a girl to engage in sexual activity and causing a child to watch a sexual act.
Iain Criddle, prosecuting, said: ‘It is described as a situation where the defendant took young children to a park, woodland, where they engaged in sexual activity, and also a situation where he caused children to watch indecent material on a computer.’
He added that Ms Grimes had believed the incident at Asda to have lasted two minutes, but in reality, it was ‘much shorter’.
Mr Criddle said: ‘I suspect for the person who was suffering this attack, it will have seemed like a lifetime.’
Neil Gunn, defending, said Johnson had a ‘difficult upbringing’ and was ‘a victim of matters that go back to his very early childhood’.
He added the man responsible was convicted and jailed for life, and the crimes may have had an impact on his client’s behaviour.
Johnson did not trust the Probation Service and rejected the claim that he had stabbed the victim of his 2008 robbery, as well as that two young boys were involved in his sex crimes, as suggested in a summary in court, Mr Gunn said.
The attempted robbery of Ms Grimes was not premeditated and took place in a ‘packed car park’, and Johnson was beaten and had his wallet taken by the men who caught him, the defense claimed.
Mr Gunn said: ‘By the time he arrived at the police station, the duty nurse suspected he might have a fracture to his skull and he was sent to the Royal for a CT scan. Fortunately for him and everyone else involved, that was not the case.’
However, Judge Louise Brandon praised the witnesses for their ‘brave’ actions, saying there was no doubt both Ms Grimes and her young child had suffered ‘considerable emotional distress’ and that the daughter was left ‘traumatised’ by the incident.
She sentenced Johnson to six years, with an extended three years on licence.
He will serve at least four years behind bars before he is eligible for parole.
Jusge Brandon said: ‘That little girl must have been terrified, as was her mother, who did all that she could to stop you taking that car with her child in it. She was incredibly brave.
‘Her bravery is in stark contrast to your disgraceful and shocking conduct that day.’
She concluded it was premeditated and said Johnson had shown no remorse, telling him: ‘You appear to blame everybody but yourself for matters that are entirely of your own making.’
Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.
For more stories like this, check our news page.
from RSSMix.com Mix ID 8291209 https://ift.tt/2Ysma3G
No comments:
Post a Comment