MANDEL: Violent burglary solved with a Band-Aid

Article content

On a fall morning three years ago, a prominent doctor was eating breakfast before leaving for work when someone knocked on the door of his home in North Toronto.

Commercial

Article content

Two men in helmets and construction vests were on his porch.

Assuming they were working in the city area, the 69-year-old widower opened the door.

It would be a terrible mistake.

Each man grabbed one of his arms and they forced their way in.

“We want the money,” they demanded as they showed what looked like a weapon. “There is a safe in this house and it has money and we want the money.”

The doctor, whose name is protected by a publication ban, did not know what they were talking about. It didn’t have a safe. He offered them the cash in his wallet.

His response was to start hitting him on the head with a hard object.

They took off his pants and underwear and tied his hands. They kicked and hit him, breaking his nose, wrist and finger, fracturing his ribs and puncturing an eardrum.

Commercial

Article content

He’s pretty sure he got a shoulder Tase too.

“I was afraid of dying,” he told the Ontario Superior Court. “I wasn’t sure if I was going to survive this brutal beating and it was absolutely horrible. Definitely the worst day of my life.

We apologize, but this video could not be loaded.

When he realized they were finally gone, the beaten doctor managed to free himself and, covered in blood, went to a neighbor for help.

Surveillance video from nearby homes showed that three “construction workers,” one was the driver of the leak, had fled. And everything would have escaped justice if it weren’t for the band-aid that Jacob Owusu-Sarpong left behind.

After Toronto police finished dusting for fingerprints and taking pictures, they left and the doctor’s stepdaughter climbed the stairs to check if any of her late mother’s jewelry had been stolen. It was then that he noticed the bandage on the carpet in the master bedroom closet.

Commercial

Article content

Obviously, he had seen enough television to know that he should put it in a bag and give it to the investigators. Sure enough, the DNA came back and the police now had a suspect.

A search warrant for Owusu-Sarpong’s apartment on Jane St. revealed three helmets, two of them bloodstained with medically traceable DNA, two construction vests, zip ties, a taser pistol and a loaded pistol.

Owusu-Sarpong, 32, was sentenced this week to 16 years in prison.

“This was a horrible home invasion,” said Judge Jane Kelly. “A 69-year-old man was brutally assaulted and sexually assaulted in his own home. He was a vulnerable victim. “

She found that stripping him from the waist down was “sexual in nature.”

We apologize, but this video could not be loaded.

Owusu-Sarpong had a criminal record that included possession of a restricted firearm and assault and had served time in a provincial jail. He admitted to being part of a drug trafficking company.

Commercial

Article content

It was a bit of a conundrum, though: The high school graduate attended York University before dropping out of school, had worked as a personal trainer and at Medieval Times, and was hired as a mentor in his Jane-Finch community.

He wrote a book while in custody at the Toronto South Detention Center and is waiting for it to be published.

The judge said she would have considered a harsher sentence of 18 to 19 years, but felt that he still has the potential to change her life.

“I can’t say for sure that there is no hope for rehabilitation,” Kelly said. “Sir. Owusu-Sarpong, I wish you good luck in the future.”

With three years of pre-sentencing custody credit, the violent home invader has 12 years and nine months left to think about how he struck a vulnerable elderly man, and how a bandage was his downfall.

[email protected]

    Commercial

Comments

Postmedia is committed to maintaining a lively but civilized discussion forum and encourages all readers to share their views on our articles. Comments can take up to an hour to moderate before appearing on the site. We ask that you keep your comments relevant and respectful. We have enabled email notifications – you will now receive an email if you receive a response to your comment, there is an update from a comment thread you follow, or if a user you follow comments. Visit our Community Principles for more information and details on how to adjust your E-mail settings.

Reference-torontosun.com

Leave a Comment