Man jailed over knifepoint watch robberies – London

A dangerous man has been jailed for eight years after threatening victims with knives, then stealing or attempting to steal their watches. 

Muridi Bahdon, 24 (09/08/1999), of no fixed abode, was sentenced on Tuesday (22 October) at Inner London Crown Court to eight years imprisonment with an extended period of five years on licence after he was found guilty by a jury of two counts of attempted robbery, one count of robbery, two counts of threatening a person with an offensive weapon, and possession of an offensive weapon. 

The court heard how, on 1 July 2023, the victim was in the concourse on Earls Court waiting to pay for some items when he was approached by Bahdon, who was brandishing a large knife, and demanded the victim hand over his Rolex. The victim used the jacket he was carrying to fend off Bahdon, who proceeded to lunge towards him with the knife. The victim then fled to behind the shop counter where he was able to call the police while Bahdon fled. 

Three days later, on 4 July at around 1.40pm, a second victim was on board an underground service heading towards Sloan Square. As he arrived at Victoria station, Bahdon boarded the train and sat next to him, despite there being plenty of empty seats.

He also noticed Bahdon looking at his watch which made him uncomfortable and nervous. Due to Bahdon’s behaviour, the victim decided to leave the train at Sloan Square. As he looked back to check whether Bahdon stayed on the train, he saw he was rushing towards him. Bahdon grabbed the victim by his shirt and produced a knife, demanding him to take off his watch.

The victim attempted to flee, almost tearing his shirt off his body and causing injury to the back of his head, shoulders and legs. He was taken to hospital by ambulance, though his injuries were determined to be not life-threatening or life-changing. 

An urgent appeal was circulated with an image to locate Bahdon and he was later located and arrested. Following this arrest, Bahdon was further linked to robbery on 20th August 2022. In this instance, at around 5.35pm, the victim was boarded an underground service from Earls Court and entered the carriage where Bahdon was sitting.

Bahdon immediately approached the victim, pulled out a folded knife from his pocket, and demanded the victim hand over his knife, telling the victim “I’m a killer.” Fearing for his life and the safety of other passengers in the carriage, the man handed over his Rolex watch worth around £10,000. The victim immediately departed the train at the next station, Gloucester Road. 

He was charged on 3 August 2023 with two counts of attempted robbery, robbery, two counts of threatening a person with an offensive weapon, and possession of an offensive weapon.

Investigating officer Detective Constable Steve Faulkner said: “Bahdon is a calculating and dangerous offender whose actions will have a life-long impact on his victims. I am glad to see this sentence imposed for his actions and hope this will go some way in helping the victims get closure from these incidents. 

“His brazen and determined level of violence were carried out in public, CCTV heavy settings, meaning we could quickly capture and circulate images to our policing counterparts and the public.”