A gang who kidnapped and tortured a 16-year-old boy has been sentenced to more than 23 years in prison.

Isaac Donkoh, a gang member and drill music artist from Newham, east London, was sentenced on Friday at Snaresbrook Crown Court along with four accomplices – two 16-year-old boys and two 14-year-old boys.

All five defendants admitted or were found guilty of kidnap, false imprisonment, GBH and a number of other offences.

Donkoh enlisted the help of one of the 16-year-old defendants who knew the victim and on the night 2 August 2018, the teenager made contact with him and suggested they meet in Barking.

The victim turned up as agreed and Donkoh and the four other youths pulled up in a dark blue Ford Mondeo.

He was punched in the head and body and ordered into the vehicle, where he was threatened with a machete and had two plastic bags put over his head and secured with an elastic band.

The victim told the court that at this point “I thought they were probably gonna kill me”.

He was driven to the home of one of the younger defendants, where he was held for around two hours and subjected to a violent and humiliating ordeal.

He was forced to strip naked as Donkoh filmed him and threatened to “cut him up”. The victim was hit with a metal pole over his face, back, legs and arms and his hair was forcibly cut.

Donkoh attempted to pour boiling water over the victim’s head, he was forced to swallow a cannabis joint and was also threatened with scissors.

His parents were called and he was forced to beg for £1,500 to secure his release.

Detective Chief Inspector Jim McKee said: “This was an extremely violent incident, which has had a profoundly distressing impact on the victim and his family.

“Whilst the physical scars of that night have started to heal, I believe the psychological impact on the victim has been lasting.

“Donkoh fronted drill music videos for his gang which goaded rivals and recruited boys as young as 14 to commit serious violence.

“I believe that removing Donkoh from the streets of Newham has done a great deal to reduce serious violence in the borough.”

Donkoh was sentenced to 12-and-a-half years in prison after pleading guilty to kidnap, conspiracy to falsely imprison, conspiracy to blackmail, GBH and perverting the course of justice.

The four other accomplices were jailed for between two-and-a-half and three-and-a-half years.

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