Burglars who viciously beat academic get long jail terms

Paul Kohler, 55, suffered a fractured eye socket, a fracture to his left jawbone, a broken nose and bruising that he said had left him “utterly unrecognisable” during the attack at his home in Wimbledon, south London.

In an interview for Channel 4 News shortly after the attack, Kohler described the experience as being like a gangster movie. “You think ‘this might be it’,” he said.

Although Kohler said he and his family had not been overly traumatised by the experience, “when the doorbell goes late at night, you do a double take now when you open the door”.

It will be difficult for them, as it should be, but I’m not going to sit here and jump up and down looking delighted about it. I still feel some anger, I hope I don’t feel bitter. I hope in time that will pass. Paul Kohler

Pawel Honc and Mariusz Tomaszewski, who both admitted grievous bodily harm with intent and aggravated burglary, were sentenced to 19 years each, when they appeared before Kingston crown court.

Oskar Pawlowicz and Dawid Tychon, who pleaded guilty to aggravated burglary, were both sentenced to 13 years after they pleaded guilty to aggravated burglary.

Kohler’s wife, Samantha MacArthur, 50, was also threatened by the intruders on the night of 11 August last year.

The attack began when Kohler went to answer the door at around 10pm while his wife, 24-year-old daughter Eloise and her boyfriend Geraint were upstairs.

The four men burst in wearing scarves to conceal their identities and blue latex gloves.

Tychon shouted “Where’s the money?” and Mr Kohler screamed “You’ve got the wrong address”, the court heard.

Speaking to Channel 4 News, Kohler said: “In my head I thought ‘the only money in this house is a mortgage and you’re welcome to share that.'”

Kohler was pushed to the floor and Honc sat on him and repeatedly punched him in the face while another man kicked him in the head.

He was also threatened by Tychon, who held a wooden cabinet door over his head ready to swing it down on him. Two of the burglars went upstairs, pushed MacArthur and covered her face, threatening to hurt her if she moved.

Eloise and Geraint were able to hide in her bedroom and lock the door while they called the police. An Apple Mac laptop, an HP laptop, two mobile phones and jewellery worth around £2,000 were taken but were later recovered.

Mistaken identity

During the two-day sentencing process, the court heard that one of the defendants believed that he was going to the house of a heavy drug dealer.

Speaking outside court, Mr Kohler, who is head of law at the School of Oriental and African Studies in London, said: “I take no pleasure in their deservedly long sentence – and it is a long sentence, and that’s right and proper.

“It will be difficult for them, as it should be, but I’m not going to sit here and jump up and down looking delighted about it. I still feel some anger, I hope I don’t feel bitter. I hope in time that will pass.

“It depends what they do with their lives after this sentence whether or not my anger eventually subsides.”

Mr Kohler said that he would have slight double vision for the rest of his life and his wife still gets flashbacks.

“My daughter is still traumatised by it. As you saw in court today, she burst into tears when they were being sentenced,” he added. “But those things will pass. The family is strong and the family learns from the good and the ill that happens to it.”

Kohler’s daughter, Eloise, said: “I had never seen them before today and I am sad that is the way their lives turned out.

“I hope they will use the time to think about changing their lives but I don’t bear a grudge against them.”

String of convictions

The court heard that, apart from Honc, all the other defendants have long criminal records in their home country, with 32 convictions between them.

Pawlowicz has also been convicted in the UK for a raft of offences including sexual assault and affray.

Pawlowicz’s convictions in Poland include four counts of burglary in 2005 and 2006, beating in 1996, robbery with a weapon in 2002 for which he served two years, and violent disorder in 2003, for which he was sentenced to four years. He was also given a three-month suspended sentence at Birmingham magistrates’ court for sexual assault in 2006 and was also found in possession of an offensive weapon that year.

Then in 2007 he was found guilty of drink-driving and in 2010 he was sentenced at Worcester crown court to seven months for affray.

Tychon’s 14 convictions in Poland include four counts of burglary between 2005 and 2012 and one of robbery with a weapon in 2005, for which he served 39 months of a 58-month sentence, while Tomaszewski’s include four counts of burglary.