The victim was in a coma for three days after the attack
Two muggers who used bricks and a paving slab to batter a man with learning difficulties to steal just £3 have been jailed for more than 23 years.
Mohammed Ali and Umair Anys carried out the “sickening attack” on the terrified victim who was left fighting for life in a coma after being left for dead in the street.
The man, in his 30s, was walking in Watery Lane in Caldmore, Walsall, West Midlands, about 10.45pm on June 18, 2020, when he was shoved to the ground.
Ali and Anys repeatedly kicked and punched him as he begged them to stop before hitting him with bricks and a paving slab.
A court heard the pair then rifled through his pockets and stole his phone, keys and £3 in coins.
Detectives trawled CCTV and spoke to witnesses to identified Anys, who was just 17, at the time of the attack. The teenager was arrested a week later.
In August 2020, West Midlands Police launched a manhunt to find Ali.
Four months later he was tracked down to Newquay in Cornwall where officers arrested him on December 9.
Ali, 27, and Anys, now aged 19, both of Walsall, denied robbery but were found guilty after a ten day trial at Wolverhampton Crown Court earlier this year.
A third man was cleared of the charge.
Ali was jailed for 14 years and Anys sentenced to nine-and-a-half years.
The vulnerable victim, who has not been named, was left in a coma for three days following the attack.
He has recovered but has been left traumatised by the robbery and is too scared to go out on his own.
PC Jodie Allen said Ali and Anys carried out a “sickening attack on a helpless man for the sake of a phone and few pounds”.
She continued: “They ignored his cries for help and their vicious attack has left him and his family with scars that will never heal.
“We can’t accept violence like this on our streets and we will always pursue those who commit such awful crimes.”
Related links:
- Terrifying moment grinning ‘carjacker’ with machete bangs on car window and demands to be let in
- Reservoir Dogs obsessive who set girlfriend ablaze found guilty of murder after she died – 21 years later
- Heartless moment gang member skips along street after shooting boy, 13, leaving him paralysed
- Dads shot each other’s daughters in crazy US road-rage gunfight
- Man killed by OnlyFans girlfriend told friend ‘I’m dead when I get home’ – minutes before stabbing, court told
- Pervert pensioner regularly stripped naked in his window when a school bus dropped off teen girls, court told
- Pub landlady who stabbed barmaid after husband said her name in bed jailed for attempted murder
- Ex-boxer, 90, chased burglar and punched him until he got his wallet back
- Riverdale actor Ryan Grantham jailed after admitting he killed his mum