Man jailed for 'terrifying' robbery of family in Birkenhead flat

One of the three men, Haneef Chowdhury, was sentenced to 14 years imprisonment today (Friday, August 28) for his role in the robbery which saw one of the offenders threaten to slit the throat of a five-year-old boy unless his parents handed over cash and gold.

Chowdhury, 29, was appearing at Liverpool Crown Court for sentencing after he pleaded guilty to an offence of robbery part way through his trial.

Gerald Baxter, prosecuting, described how officers were called at 12.20am on Wednesday, January 28 2022 after reports that a number of males wearing balaclavas had entered a ground floor flat on Borough Road.

During Chowdhury's trial it emerged that the occupants of the flat were a husband and wife and their six-year-old son of Bangladeshi origin.

The husband was planning a visit to Bangladesh to visit his sick mother in hospital and had borrowed significant sums of money from two friends to fund the trip and medical bills and it was estimated around £6,000 in cash was in the flat.

It is thought that this information was shared and the subsequent robbery planned.

On the night in question two of the men forced their way in via a flat roof and a bathroom window before letting in a third man through the front door.

Two of the men confronted the family, assaulting the husband and wife, before one went to the kitchen and took a knife which he held to the woman's throat and the husband's hand.

At one stage one of the men took hold of their son and threatened to cut his throat.

A third man, later confirmed as Chowdhury, was seen searching through a bedroom and he was recognised by the woman as a man who had attended the flat six days previously pretending to be a British Gas worker who had tried to gain access to the property before fleeing when challenged.

As well as demanding cash the gang forced the woman to hand over her gold wedding jewellery with the men present in the property for around 30 minutes.

In a victim impact statement read to the court by Mr Baxter, the male victim described how the incident had seen him suffer both mental and physical problems in the four and a half years since the incident.

"I still get up a night to check everything is safe before I can sleep again," he said. "My son has also suffered and gets upset and cries sometimes."

He also described how the family had been forced to move and he had reduced his working hours in order to stay with his family more.

The court heard that Chowdhury, who was 24 at the time of the robbery, had no previous convictions before the incident but had since been charged with a number of offences including supplying Class A drugs for which he was sentenced to 31 months imprisonment last year.

Philip Tully, defending, said Chowdhury had been "recruited" by the gang and believed that the property would be empty at the time of the robbery.

He had turned to crime after a number of business problems and had significant gambling debts.

Sentencing Chowdhury, Judge Charlotte Crangle, described the incident as a "terrifying ordeal".

Judge Crangle said: "All the while that little boy was begging and pleading for them to leave his parents alone.

"It cannot have gone unnoticed by you while in that same flat what was going on in that bedroom and that there was violence being threatened, there was screaming and shouting from the victims.

"You said you were recruited and didn't expect to be going in but was going to be the look out but it's clear you did take part and you did go in. You were ransacking and searching.

"I don't accept you thought the property would be empty. CCTV footage showed you and the two others climbing over the fence at the rear of the property and then climbing up on to the roof - you were not acting as a look out.

"You continued your denials right up until the middle of the trial after both victims had been forced to relive their terrifying ordeal.

"The family has had to move home which has caused a great deal of upheaval and financial difficulty and it was clear when I observed them both giving evidence the sheer terror they both still have about the incident."

Chowdhury was handed a 14 year prison sentence of which he will serve two thirds before being considered for parole.

Following the sentencing, the officer in charge of the case, Hollie Stott, said: “This was a shocking incident in which a family, including a young child, were threatened in their own home with a knife.

“Being a victim of a robbery can have a profound effect on the lives of victims, from the shock and unease felt by having somebody invade your home and the upset and inconvenience of losing property, through to the often-severe long-term psychological impacts.

“Chowdhury pleaded guilty to robbery and is rightly behind bars for a considerable period of time. I hope knowing this allows his victims to move on with their lives knowing he can’t target other people.”