Kidnap victim dumped in bedsheet at side of busy Sheffield road hospitalised for two months

He was slashed with a machete and a knife, and was told he would be killed as violence was meted out at a flat in Batemoor, Sheffield.

The victim suffered a number of wounds to his tendons, which left him unable to use his arms or legs in the immediate aftermath of the attack, Sheffield Crown Court heard.

Dominic Marsden and Osbourne Mhere, both aged 25, were jailed for 88 months for assaulting the complainant, and their roles in the kidnapping.

During a hearing at Sheffield Crown Court yesterday, Richard Sheldon, prosecuting, said the defendants’ role extended to “bundling” the complainant into a car - assaulting him in the process - keeping him at the property, and watching on as others inflicted the injuries involving the blades.

Marsden and Mhere became involved in the kidnapping after being summoned by a third man, Man X, to City Road in Sheffield on the evening of September 11, 2023.

Before Marsden and Mhere arrived, Man X and the complainant had gone to an address in Manor.

While at the property, Man X was robbed of a “drawstring bag” by an individual the complainant brought to the address, Mr Sheldon said.

Mr Sheldon said Man X and the complainant initially travelled to City Road in search of the robber, but, after Man X crashed his vehicle into a bus stop he started “blaming” the complainant, claiming he had been “set up.”

“He made a number of calls to associates, including these defendants,” Mr Sheldon told the court, adding: “The complainant said he was going to try and call the police, as he did so, he realised [Man X] was in the company of seven other men, including these defendants.”

A struggle subsequently ensued between the complainant and Marsden and Mhere, as they forced him into a car and drove him to Batemoor.

Mr Sheldon told the court: “Serious criminality must have been obvious and a necessary consequence of this kidnapping that followed once in the flat. The complainant was taken into a living room, where [Man X] proceeded to slash him to his forearms.

“He threatened to get a crack head to kill him, and brought in a man who slashed the complainant with a machete. [Mr X] was seen filming the attack.

“Both defendants were at the flat, laughing at the complainant, as these events occurred.”

The kidnap victim was held at the flat for around five hours, before eventually being “dragged out” and taken back to Mhere’s car.

He was driven to Chesterfield Road South, Lowedges, where he was dragged into some long grass in a bed sheet, before being left there with a bottle of water, the court heard.

Mr Sheldon said a member of the public came to the complainant’s aid, but he was, at that point, unable to use his arms or legs due to the wounds sustained during the kidnapping.

The complainant also suffered a number of other “blade wounds,” including cuts to his eyes; and he was forced to undergo what Mr Sheldon described as “extensive surgery.”

Judge Rachael Harrison also revealed how the complainant remained in hospital for around two months following the attack. He is still suffering from the impact of his injuries - 18 months on - the court heard.

Marsden, of Lowedges, Sheffield, and Mhere both pleaded guilty to offences of kidnapping and assault occasioning actual bodily harm. Mhere also admitted possession of an offensive weapon, after police found an extendable baton - along with a stab vest - at his address on Manor Park Rise, Manor Park, Sheffield.

The two defendants opted to have a trial of issue, in which they made a number of claims concerning their involvement, but Judge Harrison found against them on all counts.

Defending Mhere, Vanessa Saxton said her client had a clean criminal record, prior to this matter.

Mhere, she said, has previously worked as an Amazon delivery driver, and when not working indulged in “ingesting cannabis and nitrous oxide” - a vice he was candid about to the author of a pre-sentence report.

Ms Saxton continued: “He was never involved in any drug-related matters, apart from ingesting those substances…he says the stab vest found at his property was in relation to self-protection, but said no more than that.

She also suggested his role in the kidnapping was minor, and relatively short-lived.

Ian West, representing Marsden, described his client as being “extremely remorseful for what happened.”

He said Marsden suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety and depression, adding that this would be Marsden’s first time in custody. Marsden was the subject of a suspended sentence order at the time this set of offences were committed, however.

Mr West said Marsden has been making the most of the opportunities offered to him in custody, during his time on remand, and referred Judge Harrison to five references submitted on his behalf from prison staff.

Jailing the pair, Judge Harrison told them: “You responded swiftly to a request and were prepared to man-handle and restrain a man, and bundle him into a car.

“While you did not use the machete or knife on the man, you were present while others did.

“The injuries, both mental and physical, caused him very serious harm.”