Thugs jailed over city centre robbery terror
‘DESPICABLE’ thugs landed punches on two men and left one fearing he would be thrown into a canal over two terrifying incidents.
Michal Czerniawski and Michal Kardas attacked two men on the same day in an attempt to steal their belongings, Manchester Crown Court was told.
The court heard how on the afternoon of November 10 last year, Czerniawski and Kardas approached their first victim – a man in his 50s – on Dale Street in the Northern Quarter. The pair demanded his bag before viciously and repeatedly punching the victim to his face.
A member of the public spotted what was happening and ran over to help, leading to the defendants running away from the scene. Later on that evening, at around 8pm, the defendants found their second victim – a man in his 30s – who was walking beside the canal in Ancoats.
Kardas, 37, put the victim in a headlock while the pair shouted at him to hand over money. Czerniawski, 36, lifted the victim up by his legs – leaving him fearing that he would be thrown into the canal.
Czerniawski then punched the victim to his stomach, while Kardas gripped his neck so tightly that he fell unconscious. When he woke up, the victim heard the pair demanding the pin code to his mobile phone, before they managed to leave with the device.
The defendants were caught and arrested by an officer after the first victim spotted the pair walking in the city centre the following Sunday and alerted police. Czerniawski and Kardas, both of no fixed address, were found guilty of robbery
and attempted robbery. Czerniawski was jailed for four years and five months, while Kardas received a prison sentence of four years and six months. Pc Benjamin John, of Greater Manchester Police’s Operation Valiant team, said: “These incidents were terrifying for the victims who were simply going about their day.
“No one should have to feel
scared when walking around in public and I am pleased that these two men are now facing a jail term for their despicable actions. The investigation into the incident was undertaken by GMPs Operation Valiant team – the force’s response to cracking down on personal robberies across Greater Manchester, which has seen some great results since it started in 2018.”