Four jailed for life over kidnap, torture and murder of Birmingham father
Four men have been jailed for the 2019 kidnap and murder of Tomasz Samel, 45, who was tortured, doused in petrol and set alight in a dispute over £1m in illicit cigarettes.
Birmingham father kidnapped, set on fire and left to die in row over £1m cigarette haul
Four men have been sentenced to lengthy prison terms for the kidnap and murder of Tomasz Samel, 45, a father of two who was tortured, doused in petrol and set alight in a dispute over smuggled cigarettes worth £1m, bbc.co.uk reports.
Samel was snatched from his home in Raleigh Road, Handsworth, Birmingham, on the morning of 27 March 2019 by three men posing as Interpol officers. He was then driven to the Liverpool area, where he was attacked.
Passing sentence at Birmingham Crown Court, Judge Mr Justice Wall said Samel "was vulnerable at the time he was set alight — he was naked and outnumbered." Wall told the defendants they had each chosen to involve themselves in a "truly horrific series of events."
Life sentences for the organisers
Neil Jones, 49, of no fixed address, and Tobiasz Kozlowski, 38, from Kirkby, Merseyside, were jailed for life after being convicted in August of murder and conspiracy to cause grievous bodily harm. Both had previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy to kidnap and conspiracy to falsely imprison before the trial began. Jones had also admitted manslaughter.
Wall described Jones and Kozlowski as the "organisers" of the attack, saying they had a "motive to punish" Samel because of the financial stake they held in the missing cigarettes. "I am sure that the two of you intended that Mr Samel would die," the judge told the court.
Two paid kidnappers receive lengthy terms
Kevin Wooden, 46, of Banbury, Oxfordshire, and Kye Arthur, 35, from Lockleaze, Bristol, were found guilty of manslaughter after being cleared of murder and conspiracy to cause grievous bodily harm. Wooden was sentenced to 23 years and Arthur to 22 years. Both had previously admitted conspiracy to kidnap and conspiracy to falsely imprison.
Wall confirmed that Wooden and Arthur, along with a third person not yet identified, were paid to carry out the kidnapping. He added it was impossible to determine precisely how Samel had been treated before being set alight, given the severity of his burn injuries.
Kozlowski's wife, Sandra Kozlowska, 38, also from Kirkby, was convicted of assisting an offender — helping her husband evade detection, hiding evidence and moving money. She received a three-year prison sentence, suspended for three years.
Killing linked to £1m cigarette seizure
Samel's murder was connected to the seizure of illicit and counterfeit cigarettes smuggled into the UK from Poland. HM Revenue and Customs had raided a storage unit he maintained in Elkington Street, in the Aston area of Birmingham, in February 2019 — just weeks before his kidnapping.
Samel, who was the subject of an international arrest warrant at the time, had petrol thrown over him before being set alight while "seated and defenceless," Wall told the court. "He suffered extensive burns to most of his body," the judge added.
Survived the attack but died weeks later
After being set on fire, Samel was dumped in a remote area of Lancashire. He managed to walk to a house in the village of Bickerstaffe to seek help and was subsequently taken to Whiston Hospital in Prescot. He died on 21 June 2019, almost three months after the attack.
Wall noted that "the level of his suffering between the time at which the injuries were inflicted and his death is difficult to imagine."
International investigation spanning nine countries
The police inquiry involved inquiries carried out across Poland, Greece, the Dominican Republic, Mexico, Colombia, France, Scotland and Wales, where members of the gang had operations or had fled following the kidnapping. The Crown Prosecution Service confirmed that Wooden was arrested in the Dominican Republic under a false name and had to be extradited before proceedings could begin.
Source: The Sun