Man jailed over terrifying Halifax carjacking bid after woman flagged down and had her shirt sleeve ripped off

The terrified woman who was driving the car had her shirt sleeve ripped off when she was confronted in a narrow Halifax street by a group of three men trying to steal her vehicle.

The victim had stopped her Nissan Qashqai vehicle on Old Lane after being flagged down by one of the group at tea-time on April 16, 2020.

Bradford Crown Court heard today (Monday) how the three men then approached the woman’s car and Andrew Horsfall pulled the door open and tried to unclip her seatbelt.

Prosecutor Jemima Stephenson said Horsfall told the woman to get out and give him her keys.

She said Horsfall pulled the woman’s arm with such force, he ripped the sleeve of her top off.

As another of the men tried to open the passenger door, the victim was able to drive off and she reported the incident to the police and her husband.

Later that same day, the trio were involved in another incident in which a man was punched in the face and his works van was stolen.

The men initially agreed to bring the van back but when they saw police at the scene it was driven off and later abandoned.

Horsfall, 34, of Union Street South, Halifax, failed to turn up for his trial when it was listed last year but at a second trial hearing in March he pleaded guilty to charges of attempt theft, assault, being carried in a vehicle taken without consent and failing to surrender to the court.

Recorder Patrick Palmer today jailed Horsfall for a total of 18 months and banned him from driving for 17 months.

The court heard Horsfall’s accomplices had been jailed for 10 and six months at a previous hearing.

In a pre-sentence report, Horsfall said he committed the offences after he had been taking a substantial quantity of drink and drugs over a number of days.

Barrister Elle Embleton, for Horsfall, said he acknowledged that his actions were wrong and he was now extremely remorseful for the hurt and upset caused to the victims.