Two men were jailed at Portsmouth Crown Court for a combined total of more than eleven years on Friday 13 June after they kidnapped and assaulted a teenage boy in Portsmouth.

Paddy Cosgrave, aged 20, of Warren Avenue in Southsea was sentenced to six years and nine months in prison with an extended license period of three years for kidnapping. Cosgrave was also jailed for two years to be served concurrently for assault occasioning actual bodily harm.

Charlie Aaron Johnson, aged 19, of Middle Park Way in Havant was sentenced to four years and six months in prison for kidnapping. Johnson was also jailed for two years to be served concurrently for assault occasioning actual bodily harm.

On Saturday 2 November 2024 the 15-year-old victim was heading to a sleepover with friends. The victim and his friends were barged into by two men, later identified as Paddy Cosgrave and Charlie Johnson, on Somers Road in Portsmouth at around 9:45pm.

The men accused the victim of barging into them before forcibly removing him from the group he was with and taking him against his will across several streets in the area for approximately three hours. During this time, the victim was repeatedly assaulted and threatened, leaving him with significant facial swelling.

Cosgrave and Johnson forced the victim to go to a cashpoint and withdraw money before stealing his bank card. He was threatened that he would be killed multiple times, slapped, punched to the stomach, kicked in the face & head-butted. One of the men also made threats to molest the teenager.

He was also taunted via a game of “cat and mouse”, made to run and then caught by Cosgrave and Johnson and told to stop running. His airpods were stolen and his phone was smashed. One of the men forced him to remove his chain from his neck before proceeding to whip him in the face with this. His shoes and coat were taken with his shoes thrown away.

Finally the victim was told to run away by Milton Park and managed to make it to a local kebab shop to seek help. His family who had been searching for him was alerted and he was taken to hospital.

The victim was treated for a broken nose, split lip, and bruising. He was unable to eat or drink for two days due to swelling.

CCTV and banking enquiries at a local shop led to the subsequent arrest and charge of Cosgrave and Johnson.

The victim provided detailed impact statements. Within these, he described the following; “When I was forced around by the suspects I did not think I would make it home. They told me they would kill me multiple times. I was forced through back alleys that I had never been to before. I constantly thought I was going to get beaten, stripped and killed. Whilst beating me on the floor, Paddy was smiling. The look in both of their eyes scared me. I was constantly thinking “why me?” and when will this stop. I used to be very happy go-lucky and extroverted. Now I am introverted, scared and anxious”.

The victim’s parents further detailed how this has affected their family as a whole: “Our child is one of the kindest natured children you could ever meet, who actively avoids conflict. No child should ever have to go through what these grown men put our son through that night. My husband and I were beyond frantic, when we heard that our son wasn’t at his friend’s sleepover, where he was supposed to be that night. In fact he never made it there. Whilst we were searching around the city, these grown men were violently attacking our child. When our son was finally able to escape, after being held for around two-and-a-half hours, he ran barefoot, they had taken his shoes and coat, to the nearest open shop. The people there kept him safe until my husband picked him up. My husband and I worry about the impact that these two adults have had on my son’s life”.

Investigating officer, DC Amy Thatcher said: “This was a horrendously frightening and traumatic incident for the victim and I hope to the bottom of my heart that these sentences offer some comfort to the victim and his family. No-one should be subjected to intimidation and violence like this. I am told that after hearing what had happened at court, the defendants’ relatives expressed remorse to the victim’s family – I am grateful to hear this. I hope the victim and his family are able to move on and are reassured in the knowledge that both men have been sent to prison. I wish them the absolute best for their future”.

For more information about personal safety advice you can visit our website here: https://www.hampshire.police.uk/cp/crime-prevention/personal-safety-how-to-stay-safe/