Four teenagers who stole £115,000 worth of cryptocurrency in knifepoint robberies have been jailed after Met detectives identified their home addresses from takeaway orders they paid for with stolen bank details.
Between June 2021 and January 2022, the group committed a series of robberies and attempted robberies in different parts of London. They used knives to threaten the victims and force them to hand over their phones and then provide the passcodes needed to unlock the devices.
They would then siphon off the victims’ cryptocurrency into ‘hot wallets’, resulting in more than £115,000 worth of cryptocurrency being stolen. The group also used stored bank information to purchase top-up cards, taxi journeys and complete other fraudulent transactions.
Detectives were able to track them after they used the stolen bank information to order takeaways to their home addresses. On Tuesday, 3 and Wednesday, 4 May, officers executed a series of warrants at the known addresses and all four males were arrested and charged for conspiracy to commit robbery.
Detective Constable James Green, of the Specialist Crime Command, said: “In total, there were 19 robberies within the conspiracy in which 26 people were robbed. During my career as a police officer I have not come across criminals of such a cowardly nature. The group singled out innocent members of the public whilst armed with weapons in order to rob them of their mobile phones and digital currencies. They would insinuate that the victims were members of an opposing gang, whilst all knew that these were innocent members of the public.”
The group were sentenced on Thursday, 6 July, to a total of more than 23 years in jail. Those involved include:
Daniel Boakye, 18 (09.02.05) of Alma Road, Enfield, who was convicted of conspiracy to commit robbery, plus an additional incident of robbery. He was sentenced to six years and five months’ imprisonment.
Nathan Mohalland, 19 (16.11.03) of Manor Road, Hackney was convicted of conspiracy to commit robbery, causing grievous bodily harm with intent, robbery and possession of a bladed article. He was sentenced to 12 years’ imprisonment with five additional years on licence.
Justin Popoola, 19 (03.02.04), of Rushcroft Road, Chingford was convicted of conspiracy to commit robbery, and was sentenced to two-and-a-half years’ imprisonment.
One other teenager, a 17-year-old male, was sentenced to two years and nine months’ imprisonment after pleading guilty to conspiracy to commit robbery.
Boakye, Popoola and the 17-year-old were sentenced at Wood Green Crown Court; Mohalland was sentenced separately at Snaresbrook Crown Court.
