“Dominant and dangerous” robber has been convicted of being part of a four-member gang that raided the home of former England soccer player Ashley Cole and threatened to cut off his fingers.
Ex-Arsenal, Chelsea and Derby defender Cole told police he “now knew I was going to die”, recalling how the masked robbers tied his hands behind his back despite holding his young daughter in January 2020.
Nottingham Crown Court heard how Kurtis Dilks was the only one of the gang responsible for the robbery caught after he DNA was found on the zip ties used to hold Cole and his partner Sharon Canu.
The 35-year-old courier claimed his DNA had been found on the zip ties and a knife had been found at the crime scene in Fetcham. Surreybecause they were items previously stolen from his van.
Dilks was convicted along with five others for their roles in a series of “ruthlessly executed” robberies and burglaries between October 2018 and January 2020.
In addition to the assault on Cole, Dilks was found guilty of conspiracy to rob former Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Tom Huddlestone’s wife in May 2019 with co-defendants Ashley Cumberpatch and Andrew Macdonald.