A local man and woman have been given prison sentences after a brutal beating where a man was attacked with a baseball bat in Harefield after being lured to the area by his attackers.
James White, 22 (14.02.98) of Morse Close, Harefield and Crystal Culhane, 22 (19.08.98) of The Brambles, Uxbridge, were sentenced on Friday, 8 January at the Old Bailey. White was sentenced to 11 years’ imprisonment whilst Culhane received a sentence of two years’ imprisonment, suspended for two years.
In a four week trial that took place in November 2020, they were both found guilty of grievous bodily harm.
The Court heard that in the early hours of Sunday, 18 August 2019, a 33-year-old man was struck repeatedly with a baseball bat by White, having been lured to Dovedale Close, Harefield, Uxbridge by Culhane.
The Court was also told how Culhane and White were on a date the night of the incident having not seen each other for a number of years. It was found that White and Culhane planned the vicious attack against the victim together. Evidence showed that the victim was in a relationship with Culhane at the time of the offence.
The CCTV footage which was played in Court showed the victim park and exit his vehicle near White’s house. Whilst on the phone to Culhane, the victim began to walk up and down the street. As the victim was distracted on the phone, White took the opportunity to attack and beat him multiple times with a baseball bat leaving him unconscious in the street.
Phone records show Culhane called and sent messages to the victim to lure him to Dovedale Close where White then attacked him with a baseball bat. The messages had been deleted from the phone but were later recovered by police and used as evidence.
The victim was taken to hospital in a critical condition by the London Ambulance Service (LAS). Due to the severity of the injuries sustained, the victim remains unable to recall what happened to him.
Detectives executed a search warrant the next day at White’s address and arrested him. They found blood stained clothing that matched clothing shown by CCTV to have been worn by the attacker. Witness statements taken at the time of the incident corroborated this. Culhane was also arrested on the same day whilst attempting to visit the victim's bedside in hospital.
Detective Sergeant Jaspal Bains, from the West Area Basic Command Unit, said:
“This was a horrible and senseless attack which initially left the victim critically injured. The propensity of violence shown by White meant it was vital we were able to track him down in case he harmed anyone else. I can only hope that the sentence handed down to White and Culhane aids this.
I’d like to thank the public for coming forward with key information along with the initial support provided at the scene by LAS and officers from Hillingdon’s emergency response team. I would always encourage anyone to call police if they see someone else in trouble. Your actions could save a life.”
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