London: An Indian-origin “career criminal” in the UK was on Wednesday jailed for six years for robbing his friend at knifepoint to fuel his drug addiction.
Surinder Singh, 42, was found guilty of robbery and possession of a bladed article at Wood Green Court in London.
Scotland Yard described the man as a “career criminal” who resorted to robbery to fuel his drug addiction.
“Singh is a career criminal who uses extreme violence for relatively little reward to fuel his drug addiction. The terrified victim genuinely believed that he would be killed by the knife wielding attacker if he did not hand over cash.
“Singh has shown no remorse at any time during the proceedings. The sentence imposed by the judge reflects the gravity of the offence and that carrying and using knifes in the streets of London will not be tolerated and lead to severe punishment,” said Metropolitan Police Detective Inspector Paul Ridley.
Judge G Perrins described Singh’s attack as a “despicable crime” as the victim trusted Singh and thought he was his friend.
As Singh was clearly motivated by his heroin and alcohol addictions, the judge said he felt there was no alternative but to hand down a substantial sentence based on Singh’s offending history and his propensity to commit violence.
The court was told that the victim, a 33-year-old man, had been in the company of Singh last November in north-east London and as they were about to part company, Singh produced a Stanley knife and held the blade to the victim’s throat demanding cash.
Petrified and believing Singh would kill him, the victim handed over 80 pounds (USD 99.99) before fleeing the scene.
During Singh’s police interview, he denied the allegations put to him, claiming that they were fabricated by the victim.
