Businessman Sentenced to Jail for Making Bomb Threat Towards National Crime Agency Lawyer
A wealthy businessman with a grudge against a barrister who represented the National Crime Agency has been jailed for plotting to scare him with a fake bomb.
A businessman has been jailed for eight years for planting two fake bombs outside the legal chambers of a barrister who had represented the National Crime Agency in a confiscation hearing which led to him losing £1.4 million.
Jonathan Nuttall, 50, his driver Michael Sode, 58, and a former royal marine, Michael Broddle, 47, were convicted last month of conspiracy to plant explosive devices outside the barrister’s office in Gray’s Inn Road, central London, on Sept. 14, 2021.
On Friday, Broddle was jailed for seven years and Sode for six years.
Related Stories
The four-month trial heard Nuttall had been pursued by the National Crime Agency (NCA) and had £1.4 million of assets belonging to him and his wife seized.
‘Campaign of Intimidation’
During the trial prosecutor Catherine Farrelly told the Old Bailey jury Nuttall, who lives in a stately home, Embley Manor in Romsey, Hampshire had “harboured a great deal of animosity” towards Mr. Sutcliffe and began a “campaign of intimidation.”
She said it escalated and on Sep. 14, 2021 the devices were left outside 3 Verulam Buildings and a smoke grenade was also let off, just to ensure they were noticed and “maximum alarm was caused.”
The prosecutor said, “These devices were left in both locations with a quite clear objective—to cause serious panic, thereby drawing significant attention.”
The barristers’ chambers and several other buildings had to be evacuated, roads were cordoned off, and a large number of police officers swooped on the scene to investigate the devices.
Nuttall went into the witness box during the trial and was cross-examined by Ms. Farrelly, he was asked about a number of payments made by Sode to Michael Broddle.
She suggested, “After the leaving of the devices in Gray’s Inn you gave money to Sode to give to Mr. Broddle to pay for those activities, didn’t you?”
“I did not,” Nuttall replied.
Denied Paying ‘Hush Money’
Farrelly went on, “Following his arrest you continued to pay him money, hush money, to keep quiet and not implicate you, didn’t you?”
Source link
