Man jailed after kidnap plot to rob Knightsbridge store

Forty-four-year-old Benson Igbokwe was convicted of conspiracy to kidnap Credit: Metropolitan Police

A man who plotted to kidnap an assistant manager of a Knightsbridge boutique store to get the keys to the store has been jailed.

Benson Igbokwe, 44, was found guilty of conspiracy to kidnap and was jailed for 10 years at Isleworth Crown Court on Tuesday.

The court heard the intended victim had been approached by two men wearing high visibility jackets as she made her way home to her flat in Shepherds Bush in February 2013.

She opened the communal door and made her way into the courtyard, at which point one of the men approached her and pointed a handgun, whilst the other man blocked the door.

Thinking he wanted to steal her handbag, she offered it to him but the man shook his head and asked for her keys. Unsure which keys he meant, the victim said she was only visiting a friend at which point the man asked her for the shop keys.

With the gun now pointing at her head, she tried to persuade the man that she did not have the keys, to which the man said: "Yes you do because you locked up tonight. We followed you."

The victim was then told to get into a van parked outside. The woman walked to the communal door and the second suspect opened it to let her out. As soon as she got outside, she ran to a nearby shop screaming for help and called police.

During the police investigation it was established that over several weeks, Igbokwe carried out surveillance on the woman, parking outside the store at closing time as well as outside her flat when she arrived home.

At one point, the victim became suspicious of the vehicle and made a note of the registration number which was registered to Igbokwe.

Police enquiries also revealed that Igbokwe had hired a white van on the day of the offence and phone records showed that his mobile phone was being used within the vicinity of the store and her flat.

He was arrested on 7th March 2013 and later charged with conspiracy to kidnap. A second man was arrested in April 2013 and also charged with conspiracy to kidnap. He was later acquitted of the offence.