Three men and two women jailed for 100 years after savage 'honeytrap killing'
A dad was brutally murdered after he was lured into a "honeytrap" and expected to have a sexual liaison.
Vishal Gohel, 44, had been expecting to have sex with three women, but was gagged and beaten when their male accomplices arrived to rob him. Yarley Georgia Bruce-Annan, Tevin Leslie, Sakeen Gordon, Brandon Browne and Faith Hoppie have been jailed for more than 100 years today.
A court heard Georgia Bruce-Annan, 22, referred to the victim as her "Sugar Daddy" and the number “67” because she thought that was an amount of money she thought he had. When he either could not or would not transfer cash, Mr Gohel was fatally beaten and throttled.
L to R - Tevin Leslie, Yarley Georgia Bruce-Annan and Sakeen Gordon (Hertfordshire Constabulary)St Albans Crown Court heard a neighbour saw Mr Gohel’s front door was ajar and the kitchen light was on during the morning of Sunday January 23 last year. When he returned to the second floor of the flats in Bushey, Hertfordshire, he noticed the door was still open and decided to check. He knocked on the door and went in to find Mr Gohel lifeless on the floor of the bedroom.
Gaffer tape was round the lower part of his face. A post-mortem examination found he had suffered a significant blow or blows to the head.
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Charlotte Newell KC, prosecuting, said: "Both sides of his face were injured. There was internal bruising to his scalp, eyes and jaw. There was brain damage and his voice box had been fractured, consistent with squeezing of the neck... He was ambushed in a group attack in his own home."
The second floor flat had been tidied in an effort to clean the scene. The father-of-two’s phone and watch had been taken. Ms Newell said he was the victim of a "honeytrap" where the women had gained access on the promise of sexual liaisons that never happened. Instead they were there to allow their male accomplices in to steal property.
At the end of a trial in July this year, bus driver Leslie, 23, of Brixton, south London was convicted of murder. He had admitted conspiracy to rob. He was jailed for life with a minimum term before he can apply for parole of 26 years.
Brandon Browne and Faith Hoppie were convicted of manslaughter and conspiracy to rob (HERTFORDSHIRE CONSTABULARY)Gordon, 22, from Ealing, west London, was convicted of murder by an 10 to one majority and conspiracy to rob. He was jailed for life with a minimum term of 25 years.
Browne, 23, of Rochester, Kent was found not guilty of murder, but convicted of manslaughter and conspiracy to rob and was sentenced to 15 years.
Georgia Bruce-Annan, from Barking, east London, was convicted of murder and had pleaded guilty to conspiracy to rob. She was jailed for life with a minimum term of 26 years.
Hoppie, 22, of Barking, was found not guilty of murder, but convicted of manslaughter and conspiracy to rob. She was sentenced to eight years. A third woman defendant had been cleared of all charges.
The jury heard the victim had been in contact with Bruce-Annan on Saturday 22nd January last year on Craig’s List - an online market website where goods and services are offered.
The female defendants had left Barking in a cab, that cost £42.75p, and arrived in Bushey at 1am in the morning.
The men arrived at the scene in Tevin Leslie’s Audi at 25 past 2 in the morning. Browne had been picked up in Bromley. Leslie then drove onto Ealing to pick up Gordon, who is his cousin. Ms Newell said: "It was the culmination of a plan that had been brewing throughout the day."
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Mr Gohel had been recorded on CCTV at a convenience store near his home at twenty five past ten at night where he bought alcohol, soft drinks, cigarettes, and condoms. He had borrowed £100 in cash from his mother, who lived nearby, and also withdrew £100 from a cash machine.
The prosecutor said he had been seen on CCTV wearing the iWatch. This was missing when his body was found. She said the watch, the £200 cash and his iPhone were stolen.
“No attempts had been made to contact the emergency services, but there had been efforts had been made to clean the flat. He was dead or dying when they left the flat. There was no attempt to provide assistance to him,” said the prosecutor.
In a victim impact statement, which she read to the court, the victim’s aunt Bonny Rigby Williams described her nephew as “ charming intelligent handsome and driven.”
She said: “He had a wicked sense of humour who would bring us to side-aching laughter with his impressions and story-telling.”
Addressing the defendants, she said: “It was painful to see the total lack of remorse shown by anyone of you. You were the last things he saw as he begged for his life. We are appalled by casual way the crime was committed”
Jailing them, Judge Richard Foster said: “The facts of this case are as tragic as they are sordid. What began as a sordid little enterprise ended up as a tragedy.”
Detective Inspector Justine Jenkins, from the Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire Major Crime Unit (MCU), said: “I am pleased that justice has been done and these evil individuals have been convicted of this brutal killing. My thoughts remain with the family and friends of Mr Gohel, who miss his presence in their lives every day. I hope the guilty verdicts give them some peace at least.
“We quickly found evidence of a honeytrap where the women had gained access on the promise of sexual liaisons that never happened. Should we take this out for the family? They then let their male accomplices in to steal property,” explained DI Jenkins. “But this wasn’t just a robbery. Mr Gohel, who had visited a local cashpoint and shop earlier that night, was brutally killed.
“He must have been terrified and would undoubtedly have suffered during the brutal attack that killed him. No attempt was made to phone an ambulance.”
Mr Gohel’s family paid tribute to him saying:“Our beloved son Vishal was just 44 years old when he was brutally murdered. He was in the prime of his life.
“He was a father and best friend to his two wonderful boys. He was also a son, grandson, brother and friend. He was a wonderful father and the damage caused to his young boys by this heinous crime is indescribable.
“We are a very close and joyful family. We did everything together. Vishal was an integral part of our family. Now we have been pitched in a deep pit of grief, doubt and fear.
“No matter how many years these criminals spend in prison, nothing will make up for our loss, but we are heartened to know that our justice system works.
“We hope this will be an example to other young people that crime never pays. That the only way to achieve your dreams is through hard work, diligence and perseverance just as our beloved Vishal did.
“We are immensely grateful for the incredible work of all the police departments, specifically the Major Crime Unit for all they have done. Their investigation of the crime led to swift arrests of the criminals.
“The support we have received from the police has been amazing and we could not have gone through this nightmare without their help and support at every stage. We are eternally grateful. Thank you.”
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