Gabriel ‘fought off robber’ wielding baseball bat
A man who was wielding a baseball bat has been jailed for five years following the attempted robbery of Arsenal defender Gabriel Magalhaes.
The 23-year-old joined the north Londoners from Lille in 2020 for a fee in the region of £24million and has been in excellent form this season as Mikel Arteta’s side sit fifth in the Premier League.
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Gabriel and a friend were followed home from a night out in August before being confronted by two robbers who attempted to steal the Gunners star’s £45,000 Mercedes, mobile phone and watch, the Daily Mail reported.
One of the attackers, Abderaham Muse, then went for the former Lille player with a baseball bat, but was struck in the face by the Brazilian and wrestled before running off.
Muse has been jailed for five years after police were able to link the robbery to him through DNA after his hat fell off during the scuffle.
Arteta on Gabriel:
"It's not a nice thing to go through when you have family involved. Gabi showed a lot of character. Credit to the boy. After that he was fine, obviously he was shocked. The club have given him the support to try and move on from the situation." https://t.co/g6nsJa51Wm
— Chris Wheatley (@ChrisWheatley_) December 1, 2021
It is believed Muse and his two accomplices did not target Gabriel as he was a Premier League footballer, but because he looked wealthy.
Judge Anupama Thompson said: “While you didn’t specifically target the victim on account of him being a well-known footballer, there was a realisation this person was wealthy and worthy of robbing.
“You saw a nice car and a nice house and thought it was rich pickings. Fortunately, thanks to the brave actions of the people you targeted, no further damage was done.”
Martin Lewis, prosecuting, told Harrow Crown Court: “No injuries were suffered but a great deal of shock was caused. They happened to pick on two victims who were very fit and able to look after themselves.”
This is not the first time in recent years that an Arsenal player has been the subject of an attempted armed robbery.
In July 2019, Sead Kolasinac fought off two men wielding knives after he and team-mate Mesut Ozil were attacked in north London.
In a video of the incident that has been circulated on social media, Kolasinac can be seen jumping out of a vehicle to confront the masked aggressors, who had pulled alongside the car on mopeds.
In the footage, both men were seen to be armed and were filmed brandishing knives at the 26-year-old defender.
