Robber guilty of break-in that saw Ashley Cole endure finger-cutting threats

Sign up to Miguel Delaney’s Reading the Game newsletter sent straight to your inbox for free Sign up to Miguel’s Delaney’s free weekly newsletter Sign up to Miguel’s Delaney’s free weekly newsletter SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. “She then saw Mr Cole on his knees with his hands tied behind his back.” Mr Brady said Ms Canu became increasingly concerned after spotting a “huge” sledgehammer which the robbers had used to smash the bifold doors downstairs in order to gain entry to the house. “The man said ‘Do you want that?’ – meaning the knife.” Mr Brady continued: “By this stage Mr Cole’s hands were also bound behind his back with similar cable ties. “Mr Cole mentioned that one of the attackers, a stocky, more aggressive man who spoke with an Irish accent, kept saying ‘Let’s cut his fingers’. “Despite the efforts of the stocky robber to attack him with pliers, the robber who Mr Cole described as the ‘boss man’ – the one who had first approached him in his bedroom and grabbed his neck – prevented the attack from going ahead.” The court heard that the robbers fled after one shouted “Police”.