Teenage yob who 'ambushed' and robbed pregnant woman causing her to lose her baby is locked up 

  • David Wellington was with two men who robbed Bozena Nowak in October
  • Mrs Nowak was eight weeks pregnant when the three men stole £140
  • Later that day, Mrs Nowak noticed she was bleeding and lost the baby 
  • Wellington, 17, was detained for 28 months by Manchester Crown Court
  • The court heard that his two accomplices are still at large

By Daily Mail Reporter

Published: 17:40 EST, 21 November 2014 | Updated: 17:57 EST, 21 November 2014

A teenage yob who robbed a pregnant woman causing her to lose the baby she ‘already saw as a human being’ was locked up yesterday.

David Wellington, 17, was one of three men who ‘ambushed’ factory worker Bozena Nowak as she waited for a bus to work at 5.50am on Saturday, October 11.

The trio grabbed her bag from her, which contained £140 cash for her weekly grocery shop, leaving her ‘frightened and upset’.

Bozena Nowak, pictured, lost her baby after she was 'ambushed' by three men while waiting on a bus to work

Bozena Nowak, pictured, lost her baby after she was 'ambushed' by three men while waiting on a bus to work

Mrs Nowak was attacked as she waited for a bus at this stop on Saturday October 11 at 5.50am in Salford

Mrs Nowak was attacked as she waited for a bus at this stop on Saturday October 11 at 5.50am in Salford

Later that day Mrs Nowak, 43, realised she was bleeding and a scan on the Monday confirmed she had miscarried. Doctors said it was caused by ‘sudden and major stress’.

The mother-of-three was eight weeks pregnant with a baby which she and her warehouse worker husband Jerzy, 37, had planned.

In a statement read to Manchester Crown Court by Neil Beckwith, prosecuting, she said: ‘The whole family were happy about the new arrival.

‘Me and my husband are devastated we have lost a human being, because for me it was already a human being.’

Polish-born Mrs Nowak, who had no problems with her previous pregnancies, added she was ‘heartbroken’ and ‘felt like crying all the time’. The incident has left her too scared to go out on her own or get the bus to work, the court heard.

The court was shown CCTV footage revealing how Wellington and two accomplices – who have not been found – gathered behind the bus stop in Salford where Mrs Nowak was sitting alone.

They could be seen talking and gesturing towards their victim, before creeping up on either side of the bus stop and pouncing.

Manchester Crown Court heard that Mrs Nowak and her husband Jerzy, left, are devastated by the loss 

Manchester Crown Court heard that Mrs Nowak and her husband Jerzy, left, are devastated by the loss 

One man ‘pushed and pulled’ at her clothing and shouted ‘grab the bag’, while the other unidentified suspect pulled it off her, Mr Beckwith said.

Wellington was keeping lookout and could be seen running away as the attack took place.

Police officers who recognised him from CCTV footage later found Mrs Nowak’s bus ticket and purse containing family photographs at his home, which was minutes from the scene. Her cash and keys were never recovered.

Mr Beckwith said: ‘She said the incident itself lasted around a minute. In her words she felt she was ambushed by them.’

David Williams, pictured,  was recognised by police officers who viewed CCTV footage of the incident
David Williams, pictured,  was recognised by police officers who viewed CCTV footage of the incident

David Williams, pictured,  was recognised by police officers who viewed CCTV footage of the incident

Wellington, who admitted robbery at an earlier hearing, is a serial offender who has racked up 18 previous convictions for 32 offences including robbery, theft and escape from police custody in five years since he was 12 years old.

Defending, Iain Johnstone said Wellington’s mother had written to the court to say he had been ‘one sleep away from a new life’ as the family had planned to move out of the area the day after the incident to get away from negative influences on her son.

‘He accepts he was part and parcel of this,’ he added. ‘He didn’t go out with any intention of committing a crime.

‘He can be seen running away whilst the violence takes place. He leaves the scene first but everyone goes back to his house. There’s clear evidence of remorse in his case.’

Judge Michael Leeming QC lifted an order banning the reporting of the youth’s name, saying the public ‘had a right to know’ who had committed the ‘serious offence’.

Sentencing him to 28 months detention, he said he accepted Wellington played ‘no physical part’ in the attack and was ‘genuinely remorseful’.

He added: ‘It has caused (Mrs Nowak) significant stress and she had lost the child she was so looking forward to. You must share some of the responsibility for that miscarriage and the loss of that child.

‘It is one of the perils of attacking a woman that she may be pregnant. And unfortunately for you and unfortunately for her, she was pregnant. She is entitled to know that the courts take these sorts of offences seriously.’ 

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