On Friday, four teenagers from a drug gang were sentenced for terror attacks that included cutting off the noses and fingers of their rivals.
Kai Henry Smith, Kai Wallace Greaves, and Harley Kavanagh (17 years old) robbed dealers of their drugs, money, and property over a 9 month period. They did this often in front of the public.
St Albans crown Court was told by Michael Shaw that a man was lured to an address in Cotlandswick near St Albans when bricks were thrown at the car.
Kai Henry-Smith and Harley Kavanagh are pictured above
He was pursued and, after slipping on wet ground and falling on it, was struck with both a Samurai and a baseball bat. He lost two fingers, and his tip of the nose was completely amputation.
He sustained multiple injuries, including a brain injury, a fractured skull and an open fracture to his right hand. He also lost three teeth and received multiple stab wounds.
On the 9th of December 2019, a man was attacked with swords and machetes while parked in a BMW near Clarence Park. He required surgery to have his tendons reattached.
A second man was then ambushed in his car 12 days later on December 21st. His tyres had been stabbed and he ran from a man with a knife.
On 23 September 2020, another victim was chased into Sainsbury’s London Colney. Staff who tried intervene were threatened.
Nelson of De Parys Avenue. Bedford; Kavanagh, Willougby Court. London Colney. Wallace Greaves, Cotton Mill Crescent. St Albans. Henry-Smith, Maynard Drive. St Albans.
Isaac Wallace-Greaves and Kobi Nelson are pictured above
The defendants, aged between 15-18 at the time they committed their crimes, met at St Albans School.
Henry Smith had also pleaded guilty for causing grievous bodily injury to a man he stabbed in his back with a large, black combat knife in Trumpington Drive in St Albans. Nelson also admitted to possessing cannabis in Harpenden.
Judge Richard Foster stated that he considered Wallace Greaves, Henry Smith, and Kavanagh, who were involved in the Cotlandswick Attack, to be dangerous offenders. This means that they must serve two-thirds their sentences before they can be considered to parole. Nelson could be eligible for parole after serving half of his sentence.
Kavanagh, Henry Smith, and Wallace Greaves were each sentenced at 12 years in detention. The extended sentence of five years means that they can return to custody at any point within the next 17 years.
Kavanagh and Wallace Greaves were told by the judge that they attacked the man who had his nose shaved off. It is difficult to understand how one person can behave so differently from another.
He said to all four: “For all of you there are the significant aggravating characteristics of the motivation to target known drug dealers – either their money or drugs in order to know that such victims are unlikely not to cooperate with the police.
According to the court, on 22 October 2019, the police entered a St Edmond’s Walk home, St Albans, before the four events described by the prosecution.
It was the house of a vulnerable individual who was being ‘cuckooed by’ the four men who were using the address for their base.
The judge commended police officers for their investigation.
DC Jody Perrin stated that the violence had affected all of London Colney and St Albans. It was complicated because there were witnesses and victims who weren’t supportive of the case, who were scared to give any information. However, drug dealing was occurring outside their homes. They were complaining that they weren’t doing enough.
Ady Lysak, St Albans Detective Officer, said that the offences were preplanned, organized and executed in an effort to assert their authority over the drug operations in St Albans. This gang was responsible for stealing and inflicting severe injuries to their victims through knife point.
“These teenagers were dangerous not only to others but also to themselves.” They organized drug meetings in residential streets with machetes and blades, which was viewed by all families, including children.
Detective Sergeant Tom Evans was in charge of the investigation. He stated that there was a serious and significant increase in violence that was so extreme that there was a risk that someone might have been killed. We are happy that these criminals have been arrested and that residents of St Albans, London Colney can continue their daily lives without fear of violence. It was one the largest police responses to a string of incidents in St Albans.