Appeal rejected over ‘drug deal gone wrong’

A Mansfield Woodhouse man jailed for his part in a “drugs deal gone wrong” - which led to another being stabbed and impaled on spiked railings - has failed to convince top judges he was wrongly convicted.
Picture: PA WirePicture: PA Wire
Picture: PA Wire

Jeremy Luke Kabia, 40, was one of a trio of men who met in a car park in Oldham in January 2012 in order to buy and sell cannabis.

But the covert meeting ended not in a deal being struck, but with one man being stabbed by another and then being impaled on a metal fence.

Kabia, of Stuart Avenue Forest Town, Mansfield, admitted he was in the car park, but denied being part of the violent fallout from the botched deal.

However, he was convicted of attempted robbery and wounding with intent, at Manchester Crown Court in April 2013.

He was jailed for seven years.

Lady Justice Rafferty, Mr Justice Hickinbottom and Mr Justice Turner, sitting at London’s Criminal Appeal Court, heard him appeal against his conviction.

The Crown case against Kabia was that he and the knife-wielder had chased the other man after he tried to snatch the drugs and money.

Kabia was convicted on the basis of joint enterprise, after the victim told the jury that Kabia had shouted “do him” before the other man carried out the stabbing.

The victim was also dragged down from a spiked fence he was attempting to climb, suffering leg injuries from the sharp points.

Lawyers for Kabia argued that evidence which could have bolstered his case, and cast doubt on the word of the victim, should have been put before the jury.

Dismissing the appeal, however, Lady Justice Rafferty said: “We are not convinced.

“Significant damage had already been done to the account given by the victim of the incident.

“The jury nevertheless chose to believe him.

“We are not persuaded that these grounds give rise to any realistic challenge to the safety of these convictions and this appeal is dismissed”

Related topics: