Nicholas Mitchell, 55, of Mannock Close was one of three men convicted after the woman was grabbed from the street in Enfield

Nicholas Mitchell (top), Ahmad Ghiasi (middle), Audi Johnson (bottom), and (right) the van they used to kidnap a pregnant woman

A Colindale man has been jailed for nine years after taking part in the kidnapping of a pregnant woman outside her home last year.

The woman was grabbed from the street and bundled into a Ford Transit van as she waited for a cab on 10th May 2024.

Her three attackers bound her hands with cable ties and questioned her about her partner – with one demanding: “If you lie to me I’m gonna kick the baby out your stomach.”

They then telephoned her partner and threatened to cut off her fingers if he did not give them money and valuable jewellery.

However, despite being blindfolded and bound at the wrist, when the woman was left alone in the van she managed to escape and flagged down a cab before travelling to her mother’s house.

Nicholas Mitchell, 55, of Mannock Close in Colindale was one of the three kidnappers subsequently tracked down by the Metropolitan Police. He was sentenced to nine years for conspiracy to kidnap, while Audi Johnson, 35, from Northholt was sentenced to five years and four months, and Ahmed Ghiasi, 26, from Luton, was sentenced to seven years for the same offence.

They were members of a gang, who had been contracted to carry out the kidnapping. Police tracked the van using CCTV and were able to locate it on the night that the woman escaped. They were able to identify the suspects using DNA evidence, fingerprint impressions and mobile phone data.

Johnson had pleaded guilty, while Mitchell and Ghiasi were found guilty of conspiracy to kidnap on Tuesday, 3rd June following a six-week trial at Kingston Crown Court.

In her victim impact statement, the woman explained that she had not been able to go home since the ordeal and had been sleeping on her sister’s couch.

She said: “The incident ruined my life. I will never be the same person again. I am having to start my life all over again.

“I will forever have fear and paranoia as part of my life now. I didn’t deserve to be a victim of what happened to me. And to top it off, it was all made so much worse by being pregnant.

“This will always be something that will be part of my pregnancy, which is meant to be a happy experience, and will always be something that is a part of my daughter.”

Detective Inspector Ari Yoganathan, of the Flying Squad, who led the Met’s investigation, said: “The victim was leaving her home to see her personal trainer on a morning that should have been like any other. That a pregnant mother should be bundled into a van and kidnapped from outside her home, bound and subjected to horrific threats is a disgusting and terrifying crime.

“Officers were able to track her attackers through forensic analysis of CCTV and phone data, recordings and intelligence.

“This verdict shows how we are taking the fight to criminal gangs and committed to supporting the local communities they intimidate and threaten.”

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