Court hears grandad beat, stabbed and attempted to set his victim alight
A grandad has been jailed for robbery after a "brutal" attack in which he beat, stabbed and attempted to set his victim alight.
Mark Gibson, 59, has been caged for 12 years for a bloody 2017 rampage which left a man scarred for life.He fled to Jamaica afterwards and returned this year to plead guilty in October to the incident on Flodden Street, Walker, Newcastle, eight years ago.
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In a pre-planned attack with co-accomplice Marie Thompson, who was jailed for eight years for her part in 2020, Gibson and one other man entered the home of Olufemi Ajao, known as Femi, wearing balaclavas.
Femi was the former boyfriend of Thompson, who then became romantically involved with Gibson when she moved to Rugby, Warwickshire, in 2017.
She organised a visit to Femi's home in Walker, Newcastle, on the pretence of a drink but when he nipped to the loo she unlocked the door and let in two men, both armed with knives.
Thompson then watched on as Gibson and the other man set upon Femi.
They tied his feet up, cut his arms and stabbed his stomach and legs and threatened to kill him, while they poured alcohol on him and tried to set him on fire.
Gibson and the other man demanded to know where his money and jewellery was kept and threatened to torture him if he didn't talk.
His home was ransacked, the court heard, during the July 26 onslaught.
Phones, watches, jewellery and cash were stolen, as was a cheque for £19,000.
Femi managed to make his way outside and called police and when they arrived they found him unconscious in a pool of blood.
In hospital he had surgery for scalp and cheek wounds and smaller leg wounds, as well as procedures to deep wounds to his calf which damaged muscles and nerves, requiring months of physio.
He needed hundreds of stitches, including 260 alone for his calf.In a victim impact statement he described how he never returned home when he was released from hospital.
"Every time I look at my body I'm reminded of it," he said.
"I'll never be able to walk again properly, my legs are permanently damaged."
He said he remains "constantly paranoid" and wakes up because of recurring nightmares he has about the incident, while he now also suffers from depression.
Mitigating, Patrick Cassidy, said Gibson went to Jamaica to care for his elderly mum after the incident and returned earlier this year because most of his family, including his three children and three grandchildren, are in the West Midlands.
He said it was an isolated event, adding: "He's a different man now to the one wearing the balaclava in 2017."
Jailing him for 12 years for conspiracy to commit robbery, Recorder Samuel Rippon said aggravating factors included the 'prolonged nature of the offence' and its 'significant force', adding: "This is one of the most brutal robberies that can be imaged."