Thug ran towards Amir Khan, pointed gun at his face and demanded ‘take off your watch’ in terrifying armed robbery
A ROBBER ran towards boxing champ Amir Khan in the street, pointed a gun in his face and demanded he hand over his watch, a court heard yesterday.
He snatched the £72,000 custom-made Franck Muller timepiece before turning the imitation gun on Mr Khan’s pal.
The robber and an accomplice were then driven away in a silver Mercedes.
Mr Khan, 36, his wife Faryal, 31, and friend Omar Khalid were targeted outside a restaurant by a gang who used spotters to track their victims’ movements and relay them by phone, it was alleged.
The Khans had gone with Mr Khalid to eat at the Sahara Grill in Leyton, East London.
Prosecutor Philip Evans KC told the court: “Mr Khalid had parked his car up on the other side of the road and, as the Khans left the restaurant, Amir stopped briefly to greet some people outside the restaurant who wanted to say hello to him.
“He then proceeded to cross the road with Faryal following a few steps behind him.
“As Mr Khan approached Mr Khalid’s car he looked back to see where Faryal was and the next thing he knew, a man with a gun was running towards him.”
They had been followed into the restaurant by Nurul Amin, Ismail Mohammed, as well as Hamza Kulane who then phoned Ahmed Bana and Dante Campbell, it was alleged.
CCTV was said to show Bana, Campbell and an unidentified man leaving Bana’s home and arriving in the Mercedes at a road near the restaurant.
Mr Evans said they met Mohammed, who picked them up in his Astra, and drove them round the block and past the restaurant, in which Mr Khan could be seen.
Mr Evans told Snaresbrook crown court: “The people in the restaurant had taken them to observe the person who was going to be the target of the conspiracy to rob.”
He added that as the couple left the man pointed the gun at the former world champion’s face and said: “Take off the watch.”
He added: “Mr Khan, unsurprisingly, took off his watch and handed it to the gunman who ran away immediately and as he did so pointed the gun towards Mr Khalid, who was nearby.
“A second male had also run towards Mr Khan and he, too, turned and ran away with the gunman once the watch had been taken.”
The court was told the robbers fled in the Mercedes, driven by Bana.
Bana and Amin, both 25, and Mohammed, 24, deny conspiracy to commit robbery. Bana also denies having an imitation firearm.
Campbell, 21, has previously admitted being the gunman during the hold-up in April. Kulane has not been traced.
The trial continues