A CHALLENGE has been made over the prison sentence handed to a Bradford man involved in the kidnapping of a teenager who was bundled into an Audi and forced to hand over more than £6,000.

The terrifying incident involved the 18-year-old having a bag forced over his head in the early hours of February 5 last year.

He was “sandwiched” into the back of the S3 car by a group of men and driven to locations in Bradford and Halifax.

In August at Bradford Crown Court, Emmanual Sherriff was jailed for five years and one month after pleading guilty to kidnap, robbery and four counts of fraud in relation to the incident that began in Bradford city centre.

Now a bid has been made for the sentence to be reviewed under a scheme for sentences believed to be too lenient.

The Attorney General must now decide whether to refer Sherriff’s sentence to the Court of Appeal, where his prison sentence could be increased.

Under the rules of the unduly lenient sentence scheme, the Attorney General's Office has 28 days from the date of sentence to make a decision on the case.

Sherriff, 26, of Etna Street, Great Horton, Bradford, was said to have a leading role at the start of the incident as he arranged the kidnap after believing the victim was in a relationship with a girlfriend of his.

The court was told that the victim began chatting to a young woman on Snapchat in January last year.

They met up in Bradford city centre and went to a pub and a nightclub, encountering Sherriff at 2am.

Bradford Telegraph and Argus: Bradford Crown CourtBradford Crown Court (Image: Newsquest)

He was curious about their relationship, then became angry and punched the teenager in the face.

He took his phone and scrolled through it, with the victim snatching it back before being chased by Sherriff.

Two other males arrived in a blue Audi S3 and the teenager was punched and knocked over and then pushed into the back of the car and a black bag was put over his head. He was driven to a warehouse where three more men became involved.

He was later driven to another location and while still hooded, repeated demands for money were made by one of the kidnappers. He demanded £5,000 or the teenager would be ‘chopped up with a chainsaw’.

He was robbed of his wallet, keys, driving licence and bank card and a total of £6,100 was taken from his accounts.

The teenager was eventually dropped off in Queensbury.