A father was kidnapped from his Birmingham home by men posing as INTERPOL officers, driven to Liverpool, doused in petrol and set alight, and later died from his injuries, a court has heard. The attack was a revenge plot after HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) seized £1 million worth of illegal cigarettes from his unit in Aston, prosecutors said.
Tomasz Samel, 45, was snatched from his home in Raleigh Close, Handsworth, on March 27, 2019. He was placed in a white Peugeot Boxer van and taken to Merseyside, where he was tortured. The father-of-two suffered 75 per cent burns to his body and was dumped in a remote location. Despite managing to seek help, he died in hospital three months later.
Prosecution opens case at Birmingham Crown Court
Opening the case, prosecutor Harpreet Sandhu KC told Birmingham Crown Court that Mr Samel was 'not an angel' and was involved in smuggling cigarettes from Poland to the UK with others. The conspiracy to kidnap, falsely imprison and cause really serious harm was 'executed to teach Tomasz Samel a lesson', Sandhu said.
'After he was kidnapped he was falsely imprisoned. He was placed in a white Peugeot Boxer van and driven from Birmingham to Merseyside,' Sandhu told the jury. 'In Merseyside he was tortured and he was caused really serious harm. As part of that torture his body was set on fire. He sustained extensive burns to his body.'
The prosecutor added: 'After he was subjected to that torture his body is likely to have been dumped in a remote location. Miraculously he was able to walk to the home of strangers who saw the state he was in and called for an ambulance. He was taken to hospital where he remained and where he died almost three months later as a result of the injuries he had received.'
HMRC seizure sparked revenge plot
The court heard that Mr Samel's unit at Elkington Street, Aston, was used to store illicit cigarettes. On February 21, 2019, ten million cigarettes with an estimated street value of £1 million were delivered from a Polish lorry. The following day, HMRC officers seized the cigarettes when the unit was unoccupied.
Sandhu said the seizure was a 'huge blow' to everyone involved in their importation, including Mr Samel, Tobiasz Kozlowski and Neil Jones. Kozlowski was 'being held responsible' by the organised crime group in Poland, the prosecutor said.
'Tobiasz Kozlowski and Neil Jones had planned with others that Tomasz Samel would be kidnapped from his home and that he would be falsely imprisoned on the journey to Liverpool. Once he arrived in Liverpool he would be taken to a remote location where he would be taught a lesson. Kevin Wooden and Kye Arthur were recruited and became part of those plans,' Sandhu said.
Kidnapping carried out by men posing as INTERPOL
At 8.36am on March 27, 2019, Wooden, Arthur and a third male arrived at Mr Samel's home in Handsworth, wearing high visibility jackets. One carried an Amazon parcel. Mr Samel had slept on the sofa at the home, where his ex-partner and two children lived. His former partner asked him to open the door, and when she came downstairs she saw him in handcuffs. When she asked the men where they were from, Wooden allegedly replied they were from INTERPOL. After the men left with Mr Samel, his ex-partner noticed her phone and car keys were missing.
It was alleged Mr Samel was handed over on the way to Liverpool, and Kozlowski and Jones were present while he was tortured.
Defendants deny murder charges
Tobiasz Kozlowski, 38, from Kirkby, Merseyside, has pleaded not guilty to conspiracy to kidnap, conspiracy to falsely imprison, conspiracy to cause grievous bodily harm, murder and manslaughter. Neil Jones, 48, of no fixed address, has pleaded guilty to kidnap, false imprisonment and manslaughter but denies grievous bodily harm and murder. Kevin Wooden, 46, from Banbury, and Kye Arthur, 35, from Bristol, have admitted kidnap and false imprisonment but pleaded not guilty to grievous bodily harm, murder and manslaughter. Sandra Kozlowska, 38, from Kirkby, has denied assisting an offender. The trial continues.
