Businessman 'kidnapped' from Brocket Hall golf course was kept in cage over $15m ransom, court hears

A wealthy Chinese businessman was kidnapped from a championship golf course and kept in a cage by a gang who demanded $15m in cryptocurrency, a court has heard.

Dylan Huang was playing golf last October with his PA and two other women at Brocket Hall in Hertfordshire he was rushed by five men, jurors were told.

The court heard a gun was pointed at him, he was hit in the face and eyes and forced into the back of a black Audi Q7, which sped off.

The three women were left distressed, having been sprayed in their faces with an unknown substance, a jury of six men and six women were told at St Albans Crown Court.

Tianfu Guo, 35, of no fixed address, is standing trial charged with conspiracy to kidnap, blackmail and possession of an imitation firearm.

Prosecutor Russell Pyne said: “When Mr Huang kicked at the door of the car he was told he would be killed with a knife.

"He was put into the footwell of the car and three of his captors had their feet on him. A cover was put over his head. During the journey cuffs were applied to his hands and legs.”

The court heard Mr Huang was taken to a property near Guildford in Surrey, where was blindfolded and tape was put over his mouth. He was placed in a cage, where he could not stand up straight.

The prosecutor said the victim was asked about his means and how a ransom would be paid.

He said: “They wanted to be paid in $15m in Bitcoin. He said he had stock and shares but they could not be accessed straight away. He spoke to his wife on phone and had conversation with three of his friends for loans.

“After several hours it seemed the kidnappers were getting angry. They started to hurt him - hitting his leg with some sort of object.”

But, the court heard, his 30-hour ordeal suddenly ended when he was driven off in a car and released in a remote area near the Silvermere Golf course in Cobham, Surrey, close to the junction of the M25 and A3.

Mr Huang knocked on a door and gave the householder £100 to book him an Uber back to his home in north London.

Defendant Guo is being aided in court by a Mandarin interpreter.

Mr Pyne told the jury six other suspects are believed to be in China.

Guo had been arrested in Chinatown in London an hour before the time of Mr Huang‘s release.

He had been driving an Audi Q5 car that the day before had been tracked on an automatic number-plate recognition camera travelling in convoy with the Audi Q7, that had false registration plates, close to Brocket Hall Golf Club.

The next day the Q5, a hire car with genuine registration plate, had been tracked to an area just off the A3 south of Guildford.

The police followed it into London, where Guo was arrested. He had more than £4,000 on him and police also found Chinese passports and identity cards belonging to others, the court heard.

In police interviews Guo said he had nothing to do with the kidnap.

The trial continues.

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