Pair used a ‘honeytrap’ to lure their victim to attack
A MAN has been jailed for 11 years after brutally attacking another man with a baseball bat who was lured in by his own girlfriend.
James White, 22, of Morse Close, Uxbridge is now behind bars after leaving his victim in a critical condition after the savage attack in Dovedale Close, Harefield, in Uxbridge.
The Old Bailey heard that Crystal Culhane, 22, of The Brambles, Uxbridge, lured the victim to the scene while on a date with White – even though she was in a relationship with the victim at the time.
Culhane was handed a two-year jail sentence, suspended for two years, as both were sentenced on Friday. They were both found guilty of grievous bodily harm at the same court on Friday November 27 following a four-week trial.
A spokesman for the Met Police said in the early hours of Sunday August 18 2019, the 33-year-old victim was beaten multiple times with a baseball bat by White after what the force described as a ‘honeytrap’ was set up to draw him to the scene. He had been lured to Dovedale Close by Culhane.
White and Culhane had not seen each other for many years and planned the attack on the victim, who was in a relationship with Culhane at the time.
Phone records show Culhane called and sent messages to the victim to lure him to Dovedale Close.
Several deleted messages from the phone were recovered that further confirmed this. CCTV played in court showed the victim park and leave his vehicle near White’s house.
While on the phone to Culhane, the victim began to walk up and down the street before White pounced and beat him multiple times with the baseball bat, leaving him unconscious in the street.
The victim was taken to hospital by the London Ambulance Service (LAS) in a critical condition. Due to the severity of the injuries sustained, he remains unable to recall what happened.
Detectives executed a warrant at White’s address the following day and arrested him. They found items of blood-stained clothing that matched both images on CCTV and witness statements taken in the aftermath of the incident. Culhane was arrested on the same day while attempting to visit the victim in hospital.
Detective Sergeant Jaspal Bains, from the West Area Basic Command Unit, said: “This was a horrible and senseless attack which initially left the victim critically injured.
“The propensity for violence shown by White meant it was vital we were able to track him down in case he harmed anyone else.
“I can only hope that the sentence handed down to White and Culhane aids this.
“I’d like to thank the public for coming forward with key information along with the initial support provided at the scene by LAS and officers from Hillingdon’s emergency response team.”