Three men jailed for more than 11 years following series of armed robberies

Three men involved in an armed robbery and an attempted robbery in Newcastle-under-Lyme have been jailed for a total of more than 11 years.

Filmon Girgish, 28, of Century Street, Hanley, was jailed for four years and two months and Lukas Olah, 25, of Dundee Road, Etruria, and Alexander Myettis, 20, of Cauldon Road, Shelton, were both jailed for three years and nine months.

All three were sentenced at Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court on 23 February after pleading guilty to conspiracy to rob at an earlier hearing.

Maik Horvat, 20, of Stoke-on-Trent, also pleaded guilty to conspiracy to rob and will be sentenced at a later date.

The court heard that Girgish, Olah, Myettis and Horvat were among a group of men who gained entry to an address on London Road on 1 June 2021.

The occupants were interrogated and threatened at knifepoint. The men demanded information on former residents, local ‘dealers’ and where to find drugs they believed were stored at the address.

After stealing a phone and wallet, they led one of the occupants out of the house and made further threats, forcing him to point out a different property for them to target.

The men then went on to attempt another robbery at a second address on London Road. Again, they threatened the residents with violence if they did not co-operate.

Thankfully no one was seriously injured during either attack.

Detective Constable Adam Coomer, of CID North, said: “This was a series of terrifying incidents that saw people targeted in their own homes.

“I have no doubt that the men would have continued with their crime spree but now they are paying the price with prison terms.

“I would like to thank the victims and witnesses for their cooperation and support throughout this investigation as they helped us bring these men before the courts.”

Detective Constable David Stubbs, added: “This investigation is the culmination of a great deal of hard work, gathering intelligence and evidence. We want to reassure our communities in Staffordshire that we will not tolerate this behaviour and will pursue criminals who believe they can profit from using fear and violence relentlessly.”

The investigation was part of Operation Dispense - a dedicated team set up to tackle serious violence, made up of detectives, neighbourhood officers, intelligence analysts and the force’s gangs unit.

 

Alexander Myettis and Lukas Olah