Brentwood: Conviction and sentence after acid threat

A teenager who robbed a victim of his coat and phone after an accomplice threatened him with acid has been convicted and sentenced thanks to our investigation.

The victim, a 15-year-old boy, was approached by two individuals at a fast food restaurant in High Street, Brentwood, in February last year.

He was shown a bottle of acid by the one of the assailants, with the bottle held under his nose to prove its contents were genuine.

After he was threatened, the victim handed over his phone and coat.

Officers were contacted minutes later, attending the restaurant and taking an immediate account from the victim.

We reviewed CCTV footage, circulating the images with colleagues with the Metropolitan Police when it was established two suspects may have travelled by train towards London following the incident.

One of the suspects, a 17-year-old boy, from London, who can't be named because of his age, was identified and arrested on 8 March last year.

He denied a charge of robbery, but was convicted following a trial at Southend Youth Court on Tuesday 16 April.

He was sentenced to a six-month Detention and Training Order, with condition attached to pay the victim £500 in compensation.

'I kept going over the incident in my head'

In an impact statement read to the court, the victim said:

“For around the first one to two months I kept going over the situation in my head to imagine what I could have done differently.
“I felt as though I was blaming myself and felt guilt for what had happened to me.
“I struggled to sleep every night because the incident kept replaying in my head vividly.”

Officer in the case Detective Constable Joshua Yelland, of Brentwood CID, added:

“This was a serious offence which would cause fear and panic to any right-thinking member of the public – let alone a 15-year-old boy.
“Right from the outset, we were determined to identify a suspect and secure justice for the victim.
“Support was in place for him from the start of our investigation and I would praise his patience and maturity in sticking with us through the court process.
“I want the public to know and understand incidents which involve the threat or use of serious violence are taken extremely seriously.”

At Essex Police we put victims at the heart of everything we do. The Victims’ Code explains the rights that everyone can expect to receive as a victim of crime, and helps us define what we must do for all victims from their initial contact with our force until the conclusion of their case.

Find out more about the code and to understand the rights of a victim of crime, on our Support for victims and witnesses of crime page.

To report a crime, please use our digital 101 service. In an emergency call 999. 

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