A man who demanded £20,000 in exchange for a kidnapped teenage boy has been jailed for nine years.
Ibrahim Majid played a "intimate" part in blackmailing the boy's brother after the 16-year-old was "snatched" from the streets of Leeds in April 2009.
Mobile phone analysis proved Majid had spoken to the boy's brother a number of times before he was released and had demanded he come up with the money. Messages sent to an unregistered phone under Majid's alias "Big" or "Biggie" proved integral to proving his involvement in the blackmail conspiracy. Majid had worked with three other men, and the court heard the money would be used to pay off drug debts.
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As Majid spoke to the man over the phone, the boy was tortured and had boiling water poured over his legs, which were then burned with an iron.
Prosecutor David Povall told Leeds Crown Court on Monday that in 2010 three other men were convicted and sentenced and later had those jail terms reduced by the court of appeal. Hassan Ahmed, Abdul Rajaque, Shuel Ali Hussain and Syed Ahmed were all jailed for a range between five years and seven years six months.
The court was told Majid had not yet faced justice as he had fled to Bangladesh in the days following the kidnap as a result of his drug addiction. He surrendered last year.
Mr Povall said he pleaded guilty to conspiracy to blackmail before trial and added that the events relating to the charge began on April 30 2009 when the boy was taken from a street in Harehills.
He said: "A gang of men wearing balaclavas pushed him into the back of a Transit van and took him to an address in the Belle Isle area, which was this defendant's sister's address. They made demands to give them his brother's phone number and they used his phone to phone his brother. He spoke to him and confirmed he had been kidnapped and the gang had made a demand for £20,000. This was backed up by the threat that one of his fingers would be amputated."
Family and friends of the boy managed to raise £1,400 and the police were called, but he was not released. Mr Povall said officers attended the address at one point and found the boy with two men but were reassured "everything was fine" and they left.
"They saw balaclavas, gloves and a knife."
The court heard that during one of the calls made, the voice of Majid - who went by the name "Biggie" at the time and was 23-years-old - was recognised. The man was able to assist and provide information about an address in the Belle Isle area.
The boy was rescued at 3.15am the next, although was at first arrested. It was only during his interview with police that he disclosed he was the victim. Items, including a balaclava, was linked to Majid through DNA evidence.
Mr Povall told the court Majid's only previous convictions were from when he was a youth and were for antisocial behaviour.
Mitigating, Kristian Cavanaugh told the court Majid left the country on May 5 2009 due to drug problems he had at the time. During his time in Bangladesh, it was said, he has had four children with his wife and helps care for his elderly father.
Mr Cavanaugh said: "He returned knowing these criminal proceedings were never going to go away. The efforts he has been making to return to the UK have been ongoing.
"His passport expired in 2013 and there is no passport office in Bangladesh, but in India. Since 2013 his efforts have been going on to try and get him passage to the UK."
Judge jailed Majid for nine years and told him: "This must have been for him [the victim] an appalling, traumatic experience. It must have been dreadful for the family, exacerbated by the demands for funds."
Majid will have to serve up to half of his sentence in custody before being released on licence.
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