On Friday 5 July 2019, a group of six friends travelled home from a festival in London to stay overnight at a house in Hatch Road, Brentwood.
Around 4.45am, they woke to find three men wearing masks had forced entry into the property.
They were then held at knifepoint while their possessions were taken.
In an unprovoked attack, one of the victims was also stabbed in the leg and arm by an assailant who had taken a knife from the kitchen drawer. He received life-changing injuries.
During our investigation, officers discovered several mobile phones and bank cards belonging to the victims in a nearby drain.
Fingerprints belonging to 40-year-old Mark Emmanuel were also recovered at the house.
Emmanuel was arrested and charged with robbery in January 2020. Over the course of 5 months, three of his acquaintances were also arrested and charged for their involvement.
All four men appeared at Basildon Crown Court in August 2021. One plead guilty to a charge of conspiracy to rob and the other three were found guilty of the same charge by the jury.
They were sentenced for this offence, as well as a number of others, at the same court on Friday 25 March and Thursday 28th April. The level of violence shown during the incident was taken into consideration.
They are:
- Mark Emmanuel, 40, of Warton Road, London E15, who plead guilty and was sentenced to nine years imprisonment;
- Kevin Kabakaki, 37, of Dickens Road, London E6, found guilty by jury and sentenced to nine years imprisonment;
- Craig Cephas, 29, of Bell Farm Avenue, Dagenham, found guilty by jury and sentenced to ten years imprisonment;
- Daniel Simpson, 33, of Greatmeadow, Northampton, found guilty by jury and sentenced to ten years imprisonment.
Investigating officer Detective Constable Jodie Barnes said:
“The victims in this case were nothing short of terrorised by these men.
“One victim spent considerable time in hospital recovering from his injuries and I can’t begin to imagine the mental impact that night must have had on each and every one of them.
“Up until trial, all four men repeatedly denied their involvement. Kabakaki, Cephas and Simpson continue to take zero responsibility for their actions.
“They all deserve to be behind bars and I’m glad we’ve been able to deliver justice for the victims.”
