Three men have been jailed after kidnapping a pregnant mother from outside her north London home and threatening to cut her fingers off, police have said.
Audi Johnson, 35, Ahmad Ghiasi, 26, and Nicholas Mitchell, 55, were members of a London-based gang that was contracted to carry out the abduction in Enfield on the morning of 10 May last year, the force added.
The 36-year-old victim, who has not been named, was bundled into the back of a white Ford Transit van before being blindfolded and bound at the wrist with cable ties by the gang as they sped away.
They then fired questions at her about her partner where one of them threatened: “If you lie to me I’m gonna kick the baby out your stomach.”
The men later made a series of phone calls to her partner as they threatened to cut off her fingers if he did not quickly carry out their demands for money and valuable jewellery, the Metropolitan Police said.
Johnson, Ghiasi and Mitchell were found guilty of conspiracy to kidnap last month after a six-week trial at Kingston Crown Court.
Mother will ‘never be the same again’
The victim said she has not been able to go home since the traumatic ordeal and spent the rest of her pregnancy sleeping on her sister’s couch.
In her impact statement, she told the court: “The incident ruined my life. I will never be the same person again. I am having to start my life all over again.
“I will forever have fear and paranoia as part of my life now. I didn’t deserve to be a victim of what happened to me. And to top it off, it was all made so much worse by being pregnant.
“This will always be something that will be part of my pregnancy, which is meant to be a happy experience, and will always be something that is a part of my daughter.”
The victim was kidnapped as she waited for a cab to take her to a personal training session with her mother and sister.
She was walking along the curb close to her home when she was suddenly grabbed and thrown into the back of the van.
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Despite being blindfolded and bound at the wrist, when the woman was left alone in the van she managed to escape before flagging down a cab and travelling to the safety of her mother’s house.
A police spokesman said the Met’s Flying Squad responded to the crime immediately.
They tracked the van using CCTV and located the vehicle the same night the woman managed to escape.
DNA evidence, fingerprint impressions and mobile phone data were used to identify the suspects.
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The police said Johnson, of Cranberry Close, Northolt, had pleaded guilty to conspiracy to kidnap and was sentenced to five years and four months.
Ghiasi, of Fourth Avenue, Luton, was sentenced to seven years for conspiracy to kidnap.
Mitchell, of Mannock Close, Barnet, was sentenced to nine years for conspiracy to kidnap.
