Teenage twins from Wakefield pulled out combat knives as 4x4 car drove at them at petrol station
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Thomas and Isaac Bickersteth, both 18 and of Sawley Close, Wakefield, were part of a gang of four young men spotted acting mysteriously at a petrol station on Jacob’s Well Lane when a car driven by an older man started driving at them.
The two young men were charged with affray and being in possession of a bladed article and sentenced at Leeds Crown Court on Thursday, May 30.
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Hide AdThomas was also dealt with for a further charge of robbery that happened two years prior on April 3, 2022.


For the prosecution, Adam Walker said that the 15-year-old male robbery victim was on a bus home when a girl asked him to get off to meet her as she was “perturbed”.
When he got off a “group of young men” crowded around the victim and began stealing items including his coat, bag, watch and headphones. Police were able to retrace most of the items back to Thomas, who was arrested.
Details of the second offence were provided by a witness who had pulled up at the petrol station on Jacob’s Well Lane in Wakefield with his wife and children on April 5 this year. He saw four young men including the Bickersteth brothers “waiting for something”.
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Hide AdA 4x4 car then turned up and the witness described seeing one of the men “produce a combat knife” and the group “chasing the 4x4”. The vehicle then turned around and drove towards the group, one of whom threw a wheelie bin in front of it.
The witness said that he felt the 4x4 was “goading the group” and “didn’t think it was a serious attempt” to run them over. It was heard that his wife was “pleading with him to get out of the area”.
Police were called and armed police attended the scene. The defendants were seen dispersing items as they ran away and two bags belonging to each of the Bickersteth brothers that had knives in were later found.
CCTV footage was viewed and police were able to identify the two brothers, who were both seen “producing combat knives”.
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Hide AdIn mitigation, the court heard that the two brothers had spent six weeks in prison and it had been a “serious wake up call”. They also had no previous convictions and were “young men of good character”.
The judge, Mr Recorder Samuel Green KC, said that he would take the two men’s young age into account when passing sentence. Thomas’s punishment was also aggravated as he was on bail for the robbery charge at the time of the other offence.
Thomas Bickersteth was sentenced to a year in custody, suspended for two years and ordered to carry out 40 rehabilitation activity day sand 150 hours of unpaid work. He was also ordered to pay £120 to the robbery victim.
Isaac Bickersteth was sentenced to nine months in custody, suspended for two years and ordered to carry out 30 rehabilitation activity days and 150 hours of unpaid work.