Father and son duo from Leek jailed after kidnapping
They acted together to kidnap another man in Stoke-on-Trent
A father and son who acted together to kidnap another man in Stoke-on-Trent have been jailed.
James Ball Sr, aged 37, and James Ball Jr, 18, both of Leek, were sentenced at Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court on Wednesday (17 September) after they both pleaded guilty to the offences at an earlier hearing.
The incident occurred on the 10th of March of this year, when the victim got into a taxi on Albert Street and noticed he was being followed by the driver of another car.
The taxi came to a stop on Haregate Road when the car behind flashed blue lights, causing the taxi driver to believe it was a police car.
When the taxi came to a stop, James Ball Sr got out of the other car and approached the victim. He ordered him out the car and dragged him away. He eventually got the victim into the back of the car and drove off.
James Ball Jr was in the passenger seat. He assaulted the victim while his dad drove the car.
The father and son duo then realised they had mistaken the victim for someone else. The car door was then unlocked, allowing the victim to make his way to safety.
Thankfully, his injuries were not serious and he didn’t need medical treatment.
After launching an investigation, Staffordshire Police identified Ball Sr and Ball Jr as the suspects and arrested them.
Ball Sr admitted kidnap and impersonating a police constable. He was jailed for three years.
Ball Jr admitted kidnap and assaulting a person thereby occasioning them actual bodily harm. He was sentenced to two-years-and-three-months in prison.
DC Kelsey Johnson, from the criminal investigations department, said: “This was a particularly distressing case for the victim who was completely unaware why the offenders targeted him, before realising it was a case of mistaken identity.
“I’m pleased that we’ve been able to build the evidence needed to secure this outcome and to put two dangerous offenders behind bars.”