Boy in bike-robbery bid given ‘last chance’

MAGISTRATES SPARE TEENAGER SPELL BEHIND BARS TO LEAD ‘DECENT LIFE’

A TEENAGER who took part in a robbery bid in which a cyclist was dragged along the ground as he clung to his bike has been told he could ‘easily’ have been locked up.

The 17-year-old, who can’t be named for legal reasons, appeared at Manchester Youth Court after pleading guilty to attempted robbery.

Footage taken at the scene showed the victim, who was cycling to pick up medication from a pharmacy on Oxford Road, being repeatedly punched and holding onto his bike to prevent it from being stolen.

Magistrates heard the boy in the case held the attacker’s bike while he assaulted the cyclist – but that the attacker himself has not yet been arrested by police.

Prosecutor Nick Smart told magistrates the victim was cycling on Oxford Road in Manchester city centre at about 6.45pm on Tuesday, September 4, when he became aware of two males also on bikes, both wearing dark clothes with their hoods up.

When he left the pharmacy, the unidentified man started to attack him. The man desperately clung onto his bike while his attacker screamed: “Give me the ******* bike.”

The pair left empty-handed, and the victim suffered two black eyes, bruising and soreness to the ribs and lower back. In a statement read to the court, the victim said: “The attack has left me shaken. I feel very wary now. It still seems surreal to me.”

Emily Lloyd, defending, said: “It’s clear that he [the defendant] is extremely remorseful and sorry about what happened.” She said the attacker was the defendant’s friend, but that he no longer associates with him.

The lawyer appealed for the teenager, who is studying at college, to be given ‘one final chance.’

Magistrates sentenced the teenager to a 12-month youth rehabilitation order and a three-month curfew from 8pm to 7am. He must pay the victim £150 in compensation.

The M.E.N. asked magistrates whether they would lift reporting restrictions in the case, arguing it would be in the public interest.

The defendant’s lawyer said it would be ‘unfair’ to ‘single him out’ and that naming him would have a ‘detrimental impact’ on him and his family.

Chair of the bench Carol Greene told the court magistrates had weighed up the welfare of the defendant against the principle of open justice. She said: “We can assure the court that justice will be done today. But we don’t think that this particular individual needs to be named.”

She said: “We could have easily and justifiably sent you to prison today. There is good in you, but boy, oh boy did we have to dig down deep to find it. This is your chance to show your family and yourself what you can do, and how you can lead a crime-free life – a decent life.”