A man who used online marketplace Gumtree to trick victims before robbing them has been jailed for eight years.

A woman was threatened at knifepoint inside her home in Bow after Abdullahi Ahmed contacted her via the website pretending to be interested in buying her phone, which he and an accomplice then stole.

Det Cons Huss Ahmed said: “Ahmed used threats of violence to intimidate and rob his victims. His actions have had a devastating impact on some of his victims.

“I can only hope this sentence provides some comfort to them.”

Ahmed struck six times during April. On one occasion the 18-year-old phoned a man to boast that he had stolen his mobile phone after snatching it from his victim as he was getting out of his car in Ealing.

Ahmed, of Central Avenue, Hayes, pleaded guilty at Harrow Crown Court to five counts of robbery and one of theft. He was sentenced on August 31.