Leeds park gang brandished machete to rob terrified passer by

The four-strong group, all of whom were wearing dark clothing while some had their faces covered, approached the man in the park off Nowell Mount in Harehills in the early hours of December 18, 2020.

Leeds Crown Court heard how the victim had stopped to light a cigarette when the group came towards him. He then tried to avoid eye contact with them.

They asked him to hand over “whatever he had on him”, and began patting him down as one of the gang pulled the machete from his waist band and raised it towards him. They took a watch, earrings, a necklace, headphones, his phone and his cigarettes.

A member of the public then intervened and he and the victim were able to flee. The police were called who then hunted for the group, with 16-year-old Ackeem Menzies being arrested a short time later in possession of the victim’s watch and headphones.

He gave no comment during his police interview. Now 18, Menzies admitted a charge of robbery. He had no previous convictions at the time, but has since been dealt with by a juvenile court for possession of cannabis and possession of a machete for a separate incident.

Mitigating, Waheed Baber said Menzies had not produced the machete in the park robbery and said he was not aware it would be used to threaten the victim. Mr Baber said Menzies “rebelled” against a strict upbringing when he was 15, adding: “He gravitated towards negative influences. He found it thrilling and exciting.

"He expresses genuine remorse. He has seen the error of his ways and knows he has to remain offence-free.”

Menzies, now of Surge Close, Birmingham, was given a 21-month jail sentence, suspended for 24 months and given 240 hours of unpaid work.

The judge, Recorder Matthew Happold said: “It was a bad robbery and once could see how immediate custody could be used to mark the seriousness of it, but you are still young and there’s a realistic prospect of rehabilitation.”