Jail for Local Pair Who Stole Car with Three Children Inside
Filmed themselves driving dangerously after taking mother's Range Rover
Reggie Stovell and Badri Hussein
Badri Hussein of Masbro Road, W14, aged 19 and Reggie Stovell of Harbledown Road, SW6, also 19 were found guilty of child abduction and offences relating to the the car. Stovell was also convicted of cannabis possession.
They were both jailed for nine months at Isleworth Crown Court on Thursday, 5 September.
The court heard that at around 4.20pm on Wednesday, 20 February, the mother of the children, a woman in her twenties, was driving her grey Range Rover northbound along Harwood Road.
She had her three children, aged three, five and seven, in the car, and they were all asleep. The mother parked up the car on a pavement outside a row of shops to quickly buy something and, not wanting to disturb them sleeping, left them in the car.
The vehicle had a keyless entry system and the engine was left running with all the doors closed. The mother was still in possession of the keys as she left. She returned after a few minutes to notice that her car with the children inside was missing.
Around 5pm, a member of the public called police to report that a Range Rover had been found abandoned in the middle of Kelvedon Road, SW6 and that young children were crying inside. Officers took the mother to her children and they were reunited.
On Thursday, 11 April officers executed a warrant at Stovell’s home address and a mobile phone was located. Officers examined it and found a video recording of a vehicle being driven dangerously by two males, who were laughing and joking as three young children were thrown from side to side in the back. Both Stovell and Hussein were identified by officers. On Thursday, 18 April, a warrant was executed at Hussein’s address in Masbro Road and he was arrested. They were both subsequently charged and remanded into custody.
Detective Sergeant Kieran Curry of Central West CID, said: "The mother in this incident faced every parent’s worst nightmare when she tried to run a simple errand and found her children and vehicle had disappeared without a trace. Thankfully, they were safely reunited and the children suffered no harm, but the incident was no less traumatic.
"The actions of Stovell and Hussein that day were incomprehensible in their dangerousness and lack of concern not just for the children but for other road users and pedestrians.’’
"I’d like to thank every officer involved in this case, from the investigative team, to those response officers who quickly worked to find the children and the vehicle after the incident occurred."
September 11, 2019