Three men have been jailed for an aggravated burglary in Rochester in which a pensioner in his 70s was sprayed in the eyes with CS gas and his wife had rings torn from her fingers.
The attack took place on the evening of January 12 this year. The masked gang dragged the woman into her home after she stepped outside to take rubbish to the bins. One attacker pulled her to the ground before hauling her inside, where his accomplices were waiting.
As one of the intruders tried unsuccessfully to wrench the rings from her fingers, another found her husband in a separate room and sprayed CS gas into his eyes. The pensioner was then beaten and forced to hand over his watch as the burglars ransacked the property for valuables.
Four-minute raid
Watches and jewellery were stolen during the raid, which lasted just four minutes. The gang then locked the traumatised couple inside their own home and stole their mobile phones to stop them calling for help.
Jesse Eastwood, 34, was identified as the ringleader after a Kent Police investigation uncovered evidence that he had spent months planning the raid. He had been gathering information about the victims, the layout of their home and the watches he wanted to steal.
Eastwood discussed his preparations during regular phone calls with a serving prisoner he knew, even explaining how he intended to carry out the burglary. After the attack, he reported back on what had happened, describing the ordeal as a “horror story”.
Offenders sentenced
Thomas O’Sullivan, 27, had known the couple through their previous kindness towards him and had even been on holidays with them. While living together, he passed Eastwood information that helped the gang plan the robbery.
The third offender, 41-year-old Christopher David, was identified through forensic testing on a jewellery box belonging to the victims. The men were arrested and charged in early February before admitting aggravated burglary at Maidstone Crown Court.
Eastwood, of Perry Hall Road, Orpington, was sentenced to seven years and eight months in prison on Monday, October 12. David, of Downham Way, Bromley, received six years and nine months, while O’Sullivan, of Yalding Hill, Maidstone, was jailed for two years and five months.
Detective Constable Aaron Chapman said Eastwood had spent nearly a year planning the burglary and recruiting others to help him. He said: “The victims have remained courageous and steadfast throughout the investigation despite what they were forced to go through at the hands of their attackers.” He added: “We thank them for their support of the case and hope the result will bring them peace and reassurance.”
