Men jailed after robbery at family home in Wrexham

In 2020 the Leader reported how Thomas Flynn, then aged 24 and of no fixed abode, was jailed for his part in a burglary in Llys y Groes, Wrexham in September that year.

The court heard then that other men had been involved in the incident, and at that point they were "yet to be caught."

On Tuesday three defendants appeared at Mold Crown Court and faced justice for the crime, which a Judge labelled "appalling."

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John Price, aged 22 and of no fixed abode, appeared for sentence alongside 23-year-old Scott Powell, of Y Wern in Wrexham, and 19-year-old Patrick Flynn, of Station Court in Gwersyllt.

Price and Flynn had admitted conspiracy to commit robbery at a previous hearing, and Powell had admitted assisting an offender.

Simon Mintz, prosecuting, told the court that the victim in the case, Mrs Barinderjit Dhaliwal, had been at home with her two-month-old baby and had only been discharged from hospital for a matter of weeks.

CCTV captured four men arriving in a black vehicle, with one getting out and knocking on the victim's door.

Scott Powell. Image: North Wales Police

Mrs Dhaliwal ignored it, as she wasn't expecting visitors - but minutes later she heard breaking glass.

The rear patio door had been forced and three of the men had entered the home.

The court heard they rushed upstairs wearing caps, surgical masks and dark clothes, and rather than being deterred by her presence, they rushed at her and snatched a necklace from her throat, as well as her wedding ring from her finger.

Her baby was snatched and rolled onto a bed, with one of the men pointing a screwdriver at her.

The victim was punched in the face and abdomen - which was particularly frightening as she was still recovering after giving birth by caesarean section.

One of the masked robbers shouted: "Gold - where's the gold?"

They threatened to kill her baby if she didn't tell them where to find valuables, Mr Mintz told the court.

Mrs Dhaliwal told the men where they could find jewellery, after which they grabbed items and fled.

Patrick Flynn. Image: North Wales Police

Following the incident, the vehicle was located - and it turned out Powell had been the one to make a request of another person to help in hiding it.

Mr Mintz said the other two had "clearly" taken part in the robbery, and Price had even carried out prior reconnaissance of the home in the days leading up to it.

In a victim personal statement read out to the court, Mrs Dhaliwal said the offence had traumatised her and resulted in insomnia, as well as reluctance to wear any jewellery.

Carl Woolf, defending Price, said his client was already serving a custodial sentence for a series of burglaries - which had been committed after the Wrexham incident - and he expected to be released in September.

He said: "The reason for him being in the Wales area, I'm told, is that he had family living in the area at the time.

"There's no need on his release for him to return to the area.

"Mr Price is, unfortunately, a classic case of someone who, at the time, was addicted to drugs.

"He was smoking a combination of crack and heroin and as a result of that he had to fund his habit.

John Price. Image: North Wales Police

"He left school when he was very young with no qualifications, couldn't read or write and was unable to find employment at the time."

Andrew Green, defending Flynn, said his client had reached "acceptance, finally, of his actions and his responsibility."

He said the defendant had a "lack of maturity" and that while it was not intended to minimise the seriousness of his offending, his admission had taken "some courage."

"He wants to settle down with his girlfriend," he added, "get a driving licence, get work and lead a family life."

Matthew Curtis, defending Powell, said: "He denied involvement in the conspiracy. His offending is anchored in underlying criminality outside of that offence; assisting a burglar to hide a car.

"He had limited maturity and no previous convictions.

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"He is otherwise an ambitious and industrious young man."

Judge Niclas Parry said: "You have been convicted of varying involvements in what was an appalling and extremely serious crime; a pre-planned attack on the property where you knew an Asian family lived.

"You believed that because of that, gold would be kept here."

The Judge said the incident had caused severe psychological harm to the victim.

Price was jailed for seven-and-a-half years. Flynn received a jail term of 74 months and Powell was jailed for 21 months.

An indefinite restraining order was made prohibiting them from entering the victim's street or contacting her in the future.

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