Leeds kidnap gang jailed after victim tortured with blowtorch in ‘19-hour ordeal’
Five people have now been jailed after a Leeds man was kidnapped and tortured with a blowtorch during a 19-hour ordeal.
On the evening of May 4 a victim was lured to Lawn Lane in Farnley, where he was attacked and forced into the back of a van.
The court heard how the victim was held inside for around 19 hours and suffered serious injuries after being assaulted with weapons, including a blowtorch.
Officers located the vehicle in Bramley the following afternoon, rescuing the victim and arresting driver Carl Beaumont, 38, of South Drive, Farsley, at the scene.
Connor McCarthy, 33, of Cow Close Road, Joshua Spreadbury, 31, of Malvern Street, and Kathleen McKeown, 21, of Robin Lane, Pudsey, were later convicted for their roles in the kidnap and torture.
Spreadbury was jailed for 12 years for kidnap and section 18 assault, while McCarthy received 13 years for the same offences.
McKeown was given a two-year suspended sentence for kidnap.
The three were found guilty by a jury at Leeds Crown Court in July, after being charged in December 2023 as part of a wide-ranging police investigation into the May 2022 attack.
They joined two other men already sentenced: Kieron Gavin, 33, of Cow Close Lane, Farnley, jailed for 13 years and six months for kidnap and section 18 wounding, and Beaumont, jailed for eight years and six months for kidnap.
Detective Inspector Dan Townend of the Homicide and Major Enquiry Team, said: “We welcome the sentencing of these three defendants today for their roles in what was a dreadful offence in which a victim was tortured with weapons and badly injured.
“We know he was lured to Lawn Lane and bundled into a van before being subjected to repeated assaults in a 19 hour ordeal. It is difficult to imagine what thoughts must have passed through the victim’s head during this ordeal.”
He added: “These five individuals have been jailed following a complex investigation carried out with partners within Protective Services Crime and across West Yorkshire Police.
“We hope these convictions will being some comfort to the victim and demonstrate to those engaged in such criminality that all necessary specialist resources will be used to bring you to justice.”