Man jailed for seven years for violent robbery
A 22-year-old Pembroke man has been jailed for seven years for his part in an “unprovoked attack on an innocent, unarmed man” in the presence of the victim’s young son.Sergio Robinson-Woolridge, of Curving Avenue, was sentenced for robbing Kevin Abrahams during a group mugging at Rambling Lane, Pembroke, on August 4, 2012.Still awaiting sentence are 18-year-olds Kyle Daniels Smith, of Warwick, and Sanchea Douglas, of Pembroke, who have also pleaded guilty to the robbery — as well as Judah Roberts, 18, of Pembroke, who has admitted inflicting grievous bodily harm on Mr Abrahams.Their victim, a Jamaican national, had to have a titanium plate put in his skull, and required speech therapy after the attack. His Bermuda-born children were sent overseas because of fears for their safety.Both the victim and his wife were in the Supreme Court yesterday for the sentencing.Mr Abrahams, a construction worker, wore a skull cap to cover his head injuries.Puisne Judge Charles-Etta Simmons told Robinson-Woolridge he’d acted in concert with the mob that set upon Mr Abrahams shortly after their victim arrived at his ex-wife’s residence on Rambling Lane at 5pm to collect his son.Mrs Justice Simmons added: “At the time, you were on bail for a similar offence, and you had a reminder with you — in the form of an electronic monitoring device.”Robinson-Woolridge is currently serving a five-year jail sentence for wounding, plus possession of a bladed article, from an attack four months before the Rambling Lane melee.Crown counsel Susan Mulligan called the robbery “a crime of greed and thuggery”, mitigated only by the attackers’ youth.When Mr Abrahams arrived to collect his son, then aged ten, he first encountered Smith, Daniels and Douglas, who asked him for the time.He parked his motorcycle in the yard and collected his son, but found the keys missing when he returned with the boy.Meanwhile, four more men emerged from behind the residence.When Mr Abrahams challenged them over the missing keys, Douglas told him “the boss” wanted his gold chain.More men came to surround Mr Abrahams, at which point Robinson-Woolridge arrived on a bike.The court heard that Mr Abrahams asked him: “Me never disrepect you guys — why you giving me this bulls**t?”Robinson-Woolridge asked who had taken the keys, and Douglas said to the victim: “You call the police, I will shoot your son.”Exactly who struck which blows to the complainant in the ensuing attack has been hotly contested throughout the proceedings.A fifth attacker, a juvenile, has already come before the family court for his role in the mugging, and the court heard yesterday that this assailant began choking Mr Abrahams while another punched him in the face.Their victim managed to run over to a wall in the parking lot, where he was set upon.The group smashed a bottle over his head and struck him with a two-by-six piece of lumber, taking rings off his fingers and pulling earrings out of his ears.Mr Abrahams heard his son calling “I want my daddy” as the group kicked and punched him.Two cell phones and $80 in cash were also taken.Mr Abrahams eventually scrambled free, and was able to shelter inside the residence until police arrived.Although he was able to take himself to King Edward VII Memorial Hospital, his injuries were found to be serious.He sustained a fractured skull, and nerve damage to his arm when he was hit with the plank of wood. Mr Abrahams has had to make repeated trips overseas for treatment, with more surgery to come.Plagued with memory loss and stuttering, he has difficulty in maintaining regular work.However the victim, who knew his attackers, was able to identify them from his hospital bed.In his victim impact statement, Mr Abrahams said he’d been left with anxiety attacks, severe headaches — and a constant fear of retaliation.“I also don’t hang out with friends, because they were getting approached by people telling them to get me to drop the case,” his statement added.His sons, now aged 11 and five, don’t return to Bermuda as “they are scared to be here — and I don’t blame them”, he wrote.Mr Abrahams added that his wife had cried every day since the attack.“What I have experienced in this attack, I would not wish on my worst enemy,” he said. “This was a callous, cold and brutal attack.”Robinson-Woolridge apologised to his victim, to the court and to his co-defendants, saying the way the attack had been depicted was “not exactly 100 percent how it happened”.“I accept that I played a role on that day and need to face the consequences.”Although the court heard references to Robinson-Woolridge as “the boss”, lawyer Elizabeth Christopher maintained her client had no role of leadership.His sentence will run concurrent with his present jail sentence.The other three are to return to court for sentencing on Monday.