A YOUTH has been sentenced for his part in a shocking robbery in a Warrington park against another boy.
The 16-year-old boy, who cannot be named, but is of the Warrington area, was sentenced at Warrington Magistrates’ Court on a count of robbery.
A co-defendant, Joshua Wharton, who has since turned 18 and can be named, was brought to justice last month at Liverpool Crown Court.
At that hearing, the court heard how the robbery took place on March 8 last year.
The victim, a 15-year-old boy, had arranged to sell a vape to Wharton, of Rudloe Close in Padgate, and his friend – the youth who has now been sentenced.
The boys arranged to meet at Vulcan Park at night, but the location was then changed to underneath a subway in Padgate.
Wharton and his friend did not turn up, so the victim and his girlfriend decided to leave and started to walk home.
CCTV footage was shown to the court of Wharton, who was holding an empty wine bottle by the neck, and his friend, who were both wearing dark clothing and balaclavas, then walking behind the victim and his girlfriend.
It was said that Wharton then came from behind the victim and hit him over the head with a bottle, causing him to ‘faceplant’ the floor and lose consciousness.
When the boy regained consciousness, Wharton was leaning over him with a knife and telling him to empty his pockets.
Liverpool Crown Court heard how the victim was able to get up and run away ‘as fast as he could’.
When the boy got home, he found his £45 trainers had been stolen and that he had slash marks all over his coat.
He had a laceration to the back of his head from the bottle and an injury above his eye.
The youth was sentenced at Warrington Magistrates' Court
The court heard that when the victim’s girlfriend had tried to check on him, Wharton and his friend threatened her and told her to leave.
She ran away and was so terrified that she resorted to hiding inside of a bin.
Officers were able to track down Wharton’s friend via his Snapchat identity, and when they turned up at his address, both boys were there.
Wharton told officers: “You will probably want to take me as well.”
When asked why, he responded: “Because I am the one who hurt the kid.”
A victim impact statement was read to the court which revealed that the boy feels anxious following the incident, that he looks over his shoulder when out, and that sometimes he feels reluctant to leave the house.
For robbery, Wharton was handed a 12-month community order, including 30 rehabilitation activity requirement days and 200 hours of unpaid work.
The youth meanwhile was sentenced by magistrates to a 12-month youth referral order.
Such an order requires that an offender must agree a contract of rehabilitative and restorative elements, as well as undertake interventions to address their offending behaviour.
No order for court costs or a statutory surcharge was made, with £300 in compensation prioritised, of which his parent or guardian will pay.
Both defendants were handed restraining orders prohibiting them from approaching or contacting the victim and his girlfriend
Before sentencing Wharton, district judge John McGarva: “The victim was enticed by you thinking he was going to sell a vape. He was lured to the scene.
“The pair of you laid in wait and disguised yourselves with balaclavas. I have to view this as a very serious offence.”
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