23 January 2023 , 14:58
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A man has been found guilty of robbing Olympic cyclist Mark Cavendish and his wife Peta of their high-value watches in a knifepoint raid at their home.
Intruders wearing balaclavas broke into their home in Ongar, Essex at about 2.30am on November 27 2021 as he slept upstairs with his wife Peta - and threatened to stab the athlete, a trial at Chelmsford Crown Court heard.
They took items including two Richard Mille watches with a combined value of £700,000.
Romario Henry, 31, of Bell Green, Lewisham, south-east London, denied two counts of robbery but was found guilty on both counts by a majority verdict of 10 jurors to two following 14 hours and 35 minutes of deliberation.
One man arrives at the property (PA)His co-defendant Oludewa Okorosobo, 28, of Flaxman Road, Camberwell, south London, denied two counts of robbery and was cleared by the jury.
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Okorosobo, who held his head in his hands as he was found not guilty, had told jurors that he was stabbed in the leg on September 16 2021, months before the robbery.
He said in a prepared statement to police in December 2021 that he was "unable to do any" of the alleged offences, and that "any human could see I'm incapable of doing this".
Essex Police have released CCTV image from the property (PA)He said that he had loaned his mobile phone, which connected with cell masts in the Ongar area on the night, to a man who has admitted robbery.
Okorosobo said that he did not go to the Cavendish address and was not with his phone, but had let Ali Sesay borrow it to use a navigation app.
Cavendish's family home was robbed in November 2021 (PA)Henry, who showed no visible reaction as he was convicted, will be sentenced on February 7 along with Sesay, of Holding Street, Rainham, Kent, who admitted two counts of robbery at an earlier hearing.
And the trial was previously told that Sesay's DNA was found on the phone of Peta, which was taken and found outside the property.
The charges were that the accused men robbed Cavendish of a watch, phone and safe, and robbed the athlete's wife of a watch, phone and suitcase.
On Monday morning, the judge had given the majority direction to the jurors. He asked them to continue to try and reach a verdict upon which all 12 jurors agreed, but said he would accept a verdict of 11 jurors to one, or 10 jurors to two.
Two further men, Jo Jobson and George Goddard, have been named as suspects in the case but have not been apprehended by police.