Shetland couple robbed at gunpoint
A SHETLAND couple has relived the moment they were robbed of £5,000 at gunpoint in Bradford last summer.
Michael Irvine and Louise Cogle were giving evidence in a jury trial before Bradford Crown Court on Wednesday.
The couple had travelled to the Yorkshire city on 10 August to buy a white Audi A4 Quattro advertised on the internet.
But instead of finalising the deal in the city’s Park Drive as expected, they were robbed by three masked men.
Sajid Hussain, 24, of Cuncliffe Villas, Manningham, Bradford, denies joining with others to rob the couple of £5,000 in money and two passports, and possession of a firearm or an imitation firearm with intent to cause fear of violence.
The court was told that Shahid Sadik, of Toller Lane, Bradford, had pleaded guilty to being one of the robbers.
Cogle, 36, told the court the men appeared from a driveway and ran at them shouting: “I am going to take the bag. I am going to shoot you.”
She said Irvine was holding the case and the weapon was pointed at his face.
“I thought they were going to shoot Michael and I was begging them not to shoot him. I was saying ‘Give them the bag. Just leave him alone’,” she said.
Irvine told how he froze when three men in black balaclava masks suddenly ran at him.
“My heart started pounding and I realised it was fruitless trying to do anything,” he said.
Prosecutor Simon Haring said the couple saw an advertisement on the internet Auto Trader site for an Audi A4 Quattro for sale for £5,995.
Cogle rang the number and spoke to a man who said the car was in perfect condition and belonged to his wife.
The couple arrived by train in Bradford on August 10 and, following instructions, took a taxi to an address in Park Drive.
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They began to get suspicious when the car was not there, or at neighbouring houses.
Their contact said his wife had driven to the shops in it and then suggested they were on the wrong Park Drive.
While they waited, the three robbers struck, fleeing on foot.
The jury saw CCTV footage, obtained by the police from a nearby householder, of them running off up the road.
The prosecutor alleged that Hussain was bringing up the rear with the stolen bag.
The case continues.
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