Girl in custody for robbery has sentence halved
A teenager who was locked up for her part in the brutal town centre robbery of a student has convinced top judges to halve her sentence on appeal.
The 17-year-old girl, who cannot be named, pilfered brand new trainers from Wolverhampton University student, Muslim Mohammed, while fellow raiders punched him in the face.
The 'intelligent but disengaged girl' was handed a two-year detention and training order at Wolverhampton Crown Court in April after she was convicted of robbery.
But three senior judges at London's Court of Appeal have upheld a challenge by the girl's lawyers against that sentence, cutting it to a year's detention.
Mr Justice Irwin said the girl and two more teenagers were with Nathan Weston, then 18, when they targeted Mr Mohammed in an alley off Lichfield Street, on September 25, last year. The victim had just left Footlocker and was smoking when a 15-year-old boy from the group approached him and asked for a cigarette, the judge added.
When the student refused, the boy 'clenched his fist' and Weston approached Mr Mohammed from behind, punching him to the head and face.The appellant, then 16, and a slightly older teenage girl picked up the bags, which contained new trainers worth £65, a shoe cleaning product, two T-shirts worth £20 and other personal items.
The gang were found guilty by a jury. Weston, now 20, received two year's detention in a young offenders institution, the older teenage girl was handed a two-year detention and training order, while the 15 year-old boy was detained for 10 months.
The appellant's barrister argued that, given the much more serious criminal records of others involved, the judge gave her a manifestly excessive sentence. The appeal judges agreed.
