Life for axe robber who left brave cop seriously injured
A serial armed robber who left a brave Flying Squad officer with serious head injuries told a judge he was ‘taking the piss’ as he was jailed for life.
Charlie Kavanagh, 26, was part of a gang of armed robbers who wielded axes and machetes in a terrifying raid on a luxury watch store.
Det Con Richard Watson was left with a fractured skull and four other officers were hurt tackling the raiders as they arrived at the Chronext shop in Piccadilly on August 3.
Kavanagh admitted causing serious injuries to DC Watson by dangerous driving after running him over on a moped.
He had been let out of jail on licence when he drove directly for DC Watson, who was looking the other way, as he tried to escape.
Kavanagh has three previous convictions for conspiracy to rob and today (thurs) Judge Sally Cahill QC said he posed a ‘serious risk to the public’.
Stephen Hopkins, 29, who was also on licence at the time, left one of DC Watson’s colleagues, Det Con Will Roscoe, with a gaping wound to his leg after slashing him with a machete.
Hopkins received a 14 and a half year prison sentence, with ten and a half of that to be spend behind bars and the rest on extended licence.
Balding James Symes, 30, was handed the same sentence.
Johnny Kyriacou, 25, wearing a black t-shirt, was sent to prison for 10 and a half years.
The men were laughing, messing around in the dock and waving to family members throughout the hearing at Blackfriars Crown Court.
Judge Sally Cahill QC told Kavanagh: ‘I am satisfied you pose a risk to members of the public of serious harm and that you will commit further specified offences.
‘For the offence of conspiracy to commit robbery and dangerous driving the sentence in your case is a sentence for life.
‘This was not only a robbery but also you caused serious injury in your attempts to escape.
‘The sentence is a life sentence of imprisonment.’
Judge Cahill told him if she had not passed a life sentence he would have received 13 and a half years in prison.
He was also banned from driving for 10 years.
As the sentence was passed family members in the packed public gallery weeped and called out while Kavanagh said: ‘You’re taking the piss’.
Turning to Hopkins Judge Cahill said she was worried about the escalation in his offending and his criminal and drug connections and extended his sentence.
‘You posed risk of significant harm to members of the public and committing further specified offences,’ she said.
‘The sentence will be one of 10 years and six months extended for four years.
’10 and a half years imprisonment and four years in extended licence.
‘I pass a sentence of 12 months for the unlawful wounding to run concurrently.’
Hopkins shook his head as he was led from the dock and a family member stormed from the courtroom.
Judge Cahill passed the exact same sentence for Symes who saluted his family who in turn shouted ‘stay strong’ as he was led away.
Finally turning to Kyriacou the judge accepted that he had not struggled with police, unlike the rest of the gang, and passed a sentence of 10 and a half years but did not extend it.
His family looked on weeping.
Kavanagh, of Hedingham Close, Islington, admitted causing serious injury by dangerous driving and conspiracy to rob.
He was sent to prison for life.
He will be eligible for parole after just under seven years, half of his sentence had judge Cahill not passed one of life.
Hopkins, of Ewe Close, Islington, admitted conspiracy to rob and was given a 14 and a half year sentence with ten and a half of that to be served in prison and four on licence.
He was given 12 months for unlawful wounding to run concurrently.
Symes, of no fixed address, admitted conspiracy to rob and received the same length sentence as Hopkins.
Kyriacou, of Liverpool Road, Islington, was sent to prison for ten and a half years.
They will be eligible for release after five years.
Judge Cahill said all the officers involved in the case ‘deserved to be commended’ for their efforts before the event and on the day.
Speaking after DC Watson was left seriously injured, Det Supt Craig Turner said: ‘Our officers are absolutely committed to keeping London safe and target the criminals who pose a danger to Londoners and our city businesses day in, day out.
‘They know that this work carries with it very real risks and dangers but take this in their stride as part of serving the public. However, today’s events highlight how the reckless behaviour of those determined to evade justice, heedless of the consequences, can have a real impact on all those involved.’
A gang of armed robbers who left a police officer with serious head injuries after a matchete raid on a jewellery store are facing decades behind bars.
Det Con Richard Watson was left with a bleed on the brain and four other Flying Squad officers were hurt tackling the raiders outside the Chronext shop in Piccadilly.
DC Watson suffered a fractured skull, six cracked ribs, a broken ankle and a damaged lung and has been unable to work since a being run over by a moped on August 3.
He is still off and work and said in a statement read to the court: ‘All I did was go to work one day and ended up on an operating table.’
The thugs had damaged 60 watches worth £90,000 while trying to make off with £1m worth of Rolex, and Patak Phillippe timepieces.
Serial armed robber Charlie Kavanagh, 26, faces years behind bars after he admitted causing serious injuries to DC Watson by driving with reckless intent.
Kavanagh accelerated and was trying to escape ‘at all costs’ before deliberately driving at officers and ploughing into DC Watson as he had his back turned.
He had to have an craniotomy to deal with a blood clot on the brain after suffering a traumatic haemorrhage.
Kavanagh has previously served lengthy sentences for his involvement in two almost identical smash and grab raids.
He was jailed for three years in 2009 and five years in 2011 and was out on licence when he joined his three associates in targeting the high end watch shop.
Stephen Hopkins, 29, left another Flying Squad officer, Det Con Will Roscoe, with a gaping wound to his leg after slashing him with a machete.
Kavanagh, Hopkins are facing sentence today (thurs) for the Chronext shop raid along with James Symes, 30, and Johnny Kyriacou, 25.
Plain clothed officers were lying in wait pounced to foil the raid as soon as the balaclava wearing gang entered the shop, Blackfriars Crown Court heard.
‘On 3rd August at 11am the defendants moved towards the west end on stolen mopeds,’ said prosecutor Howard Tobias.
‘They were periodically mounting the pavement to avoid traffic.
‘Members of the public narrowly missed being hit by them.’
Mr Tobias said that the two bikes driven by Kavanagh and Symes, with Hopkins and Kyriacou as pillion passengers mounted the pavement outside the Chronext shop at 11:20am.
Hopkins and Symes smashed the glass front door and entered the shop yelling at staff ‘do not f—–g move’ before smashing glass cabinets.
The two drivers revved the engines of the bikes to stop anyone approaching, said Mr Tobias.
Plain clothes police officers were already in the shop and fired a taser at Kyriacou who was arrested after dropping his axe.
Hopkins ran off down the street still carrying his axe.
‘DC Roscoe ran towards him and rugby tackled him,’ said Mr Tobias.
DC Roscoe was left with a ‘deep laceration above the right knee’ in the struggle.
Hopkins was wearing five layers of clothes to protect himself from tasers, said Mr Tobias.
It took four officers to subdue Symes who was carrying a large kitchen knife in his clothes.
Kavanagh was still on his moped and tried to escape while ‘brandishing a large machete’ at officers.
‘He jabbed it toward them a number of times,’ said Mr Tobias.
‘He then threw the machete down and attempted to drive off.
‘There was clearly no way through for the moped but he started to accelerate towards police.’
Mr Tobias said Kavanagh sped towards DC Watson and another officer DC Jamie Witts who had their backs to him.
A colleague said he saw DC Watson being ‘thrown up in the air’.
Mr Tobias said Kavanagh was ‘trying to escape at all costs’ and did not care ‘what or who was in his way.’
DC Watson was left trapped under the bike and suffered a seizure.
He suffered a traumatic brain injury and had surgery to remove a blood clot from his brain and spent five days in hospital.
The gang caused a total of £129,975 worth of damage including £90,258 to repair 60 damaged watches that included Rolex, Patek Philippe and Audemars Piguet, said Mr Tobias.
In a statement read out in court DC Watson, who is still on crutches, said: ‘All I did was go to work one day and ended up on an operating table two days later.’
‘It has had and is still having an impact in my day to day life.
‘I am in a considerable amount of pain.’
‘My head hurts all of the time.
‘I had a craniotomy to relieve the pressure on my brain.
‘I have lost the feeling I the left side of my head.
‘I have a scar to the right side of my face, I am hoping it will disappear.
‘The brain injury could affect my career and I am still off work.’
DC Watson said he can no longer enjoy his favourite hobby of mountaineering.
The officer has also had his driving licence taken away from him and he said this would massively affect his work ‘If I am allowed to return’.
Kavanagh has an appalling criminal record comrising of 17 previous convictions for 90 offences.
He was jailed for three years and four months for a smash-and-grab jewellery raid in Southgate, north London, in December 2009.
Kavanagh was released on licence after serving half his sentence on January 6, 2011, and just days later on February 2 he helped a gang pull off a heist at Watches of Switzerland in Royal Exchange.
Armed with axes, Kavanagh and three accomplices stole £290,000 worth of jewellery before escaping on motorbikes during that raid.
Dramatic CCTV images released at the time showed staff holding up their hands before fleeing to a basement in fear for their lives.
The robbers then fled through the streets of Islington on high-powered motorbikes with 28 top-of-the-range watches made by Rolex, Patek Philippe and Jaeger.
Kavanagh admitted conspiracy to rob at the Old Bailey in June 2011 and was jailed for five years for the Watches of Switzerland raid.
He was jailed the same year for a similar robbery in Bury St Edmunds and sentenced to six years to run concurrently with the five year sentence.
His licence period was extended by three years after a judge ruled he was a ‘danger to the public’.
But Kavanagh was let out of jail and joined a gang of axe wielding robbers in a raid at the Chronext shop in Piccadilly Circus on August 3.
Hopkins was also on licence at time of robbery after getting 40 months for robbing a kitchen showroom in March 2014.
Symes has 22 convictions for 40 offences and was jailed for four years for his his part in a scooter smash and grab on a jewellery store in Clerkenwell in 2007.
Hopkins has nine previous convictions for 14 offences.
He was locked up for 40 months in 2014 after he was convicted of his part of a two man masked team who stole £13,500 of computer equipment from a kitchen showroom.
Kyriacou tried to rob Finsbury Park library in 2013 when he broke the window with a rock but stole nothing before making off on a moped.
Kavanagh, of Hedingham Close, Islington, admitted to causing serious injury by dangerous driving and conspiracy to rob.
Hopkins, of Ewe Close, Islington, admitted conspiracy to rob and unlawful wounding.
Kyriacou, of Liverpool Road, Islington, and Symes, of no fixed address, both admitted conspiracy to rob.
Judge Sally Cahill, QC, is due to sentence the gang later today (thurs).
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