Two Newham men jailed for violent mugging of tourist

Two Newham men who mugged a Spanish tourist on the Tube after the Notting Hill Carnival last year have each been jailed for 54 months.

Claude Greenaway, 18, of Plaistow Road, Stratford and Lewis McCarthy, 18, of Stock Street, Plaistow, were captured on CCTV cameras on the Central Line.

They were convicted at Snaresbrook Crown Court on November 11 of robbery after trial.

Jurors heard a group of five, including the accused, had left the carnival and were travelling on the Underground at about 7pm on August 30, 2010.

The victim, aged 35, was travelling with his girlfriend on the same train as the group, walked past them as he went to alight at St Paul’s station.

He felt a tug at his bag and as he turned around was punched repeatedly in the face by group members as he clung to his belongings.

The attack spilled onto the platform where the victim was shoved to the floor, punched and kicked.

The men fled with the bag, which was discarded nearby after a fountain pen and notebook had been taken.

Two other gang members were convicted of the same charge. A 16-year-old from West Ham received three years imprisonment while another youth, aged 16, from Barnsbury, north London, was jailed for 30 months

British Transport Police Det Sgt Tom Madden, the investigating officer, said: “The group fled the station but were picked up on CCTV and arrested as they boarded a bus nearby.”

He added that while robberies are not common on the Tube the level of violence used by the accused was shocking.”