A United Kingdom court has sentenced a 35-year-old Nigerian woman, Gloria Makanjuola, to nine months’ imprisonment for assaulting a passenger and attempting to steal from him aboard a London Underground train.
Makanjuola was handed the jail term on Thursday, February 19, by the Woolwich Crown Court after pleading guilty to charges of assault and attempted theft, according to a statement by the British Transport Police.
The court heard that the incident occurred shortly before midnight on March 3, 2023, while the victim was travelling on an eastbound Central Line train heading towards Hainault Underground station.
Investigators said Makanjuola sat beside the man and requested money before allegedly reaching into his coat pocket.
She reportedly removed his phone and told him she would return it only if he handed over cash.
Police stated that as the victim tried to retrieve his phone, the defendant continued searching his pockets, pulled out his wallet and took £60, while the phone fell to the floor.
The victim later reported that she struck him repeatedly and bent his fingers backwards during the struggle.
The prosecution further told the court that Makanjuola pursued the man down the carriage and allegedly tackled him near the train doors as it pulled into Hainault station.
She fled the scene after the altercation, while bystanders and railway staff assisted the victim, who subsequently discovered his phone had been damaged.
Detective Sergeant Bronwyn Prew of the British Transport Police described the incident as a deliberate attack on an unsuspecting commuter, stressing that violence and theft would not be tolerated on the rail network and offenders would continue to face prosecution.
