Four jailed for death of man tortured and set alight
The pair orchestrated a kidnapping and torture linked to £1 million in seized cigarettes, receiving life sentences with minimum terms of 34 and 33 years respectively.
- On Friday, Birmingham Crown Court sentenced four men for the 2019 kidnapping and murder of Tomasz Samel. Organizers Neil Jones and Tobiasz Kozlowski received life sentences, while Kevin Wooden and Kye Arthur were convicted of manslaughter.
- The attack stemmed from the loss of £1 million worth of illicit cigarettes seized by HM Revenue and Customs in February 2019. Samel was kidnapped from his home by men posing as law enforcement officers before being driven to Merseyside and tortured.
- Jones must serve at least 34 years and Kozlowski at least 33 years before parole consideration. Wooden and Arthur received 23 and 22 years respectively, while Sandra Kozlowska, Kozlowski's wife, was given a suspended three-year sentence for assisting an offender.
- Judge Mr Justice Wall described the case as a "truly horrific series of events," noting Samel "suffered extensive burns to most of his body" after being stripped and set alight. The judge stated that abandoning him without help confirmed the attackers' intent to kill.
- West Midlands Police led a complex international investigation spanning Poland, Greece, and the Dominican Republic to secure evidence across jurisdictions. CPS prosecutor Hannah Sidaway said the cross-border cooperation "shows what can be achieved when prosecutors and law enforcement work together.
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7 Articles
Four men jailed after father-of-two tortured, set alight and killed in horrific gang attack
Four men have been jailed after a father of two was tortured, set alight and killed in a horrific gang attack.Tomasz Samel, 45, was kidnapped in March 2019 in Birmingham by three men claiming to be from Interpol, before being driven to the Liverpool area and attacked to be "taught a lesson" over the loss of cigarettes worth £1million.He died in hospital three months after the brutal attack on June 21 of the same year.Mr Samel's killing was linke…
Warrington Guardian
St Helens StarGang jailed for 112 years after death of dad who was tortured and burned alive
Four men jailed for 112 years after Tomasz Samel was kidnapped in Birmingham, doused in petrol and set alight over £1m cigarette consignment seized by HMRC.
Four jailed for killing man who was tortured, set on fire and dumped in Lancashire
Four men have been jailed after the brutal killing of an organised crime group member who was kidnapped, doused in petrol and set alight before being dumped by a Lancashire village.
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