Armed robber who targeted school children in Margate jailed almost nine years on

A mugger who targeted schoolchildren before going on the run for eight years after “disappearing” in court has been jailed.

Marian Makula, formerly of Margate, was arrested in November after re-entering the country from his native Slovakia.

The 25-year-old was wanted by police after he fled Canterbury Crown Court in 2014 after recently pleading guilty to three counts of robbery.

Makula and Eugen Godla, then aged 16 and 17, targeted three boys for mobile phones as they were walking home from school in Margate in February 2014.

After the case was adjourned for a few hours, “Makula disappeared and an arrest warrant was issued without bail being posted,” prosecutor Amy Nicholson said Thursday in the same court.

Makula was jailed for 18 months for his historic crimes in addition to the bail crimes.

The court heard that Makula evaded police detection and fled to his home country, where he hid at his grandmother’s house while he worked on the railroad.

Meanwhile, British police continued to hunt down Makula, who, along with his co-defendant, carried out the robberies for two days.

“A neighbor, Maria Murphy, saw it [the boy] soon in tears. He appeared shocked, clearly shaken and distraught…”

He and Godla pulled a knife on a 14-year-old boy on Northdown Road around 4pm and robbed his Nokia C5.

Shortly thereafter, the two pursued a 16-year-old boy towards Albert Terrace and followed him into his home.

But when they demanded their victim’s phone, his father interrupted the robbery and told them to run.

The next day, they demanded a 14-year-old boy hand over his Samsung phone – a £100 Christmas present – on St Dunstan’s Road.

Godla threatened to stab the boy if he refused, Ms Nicholson explained.

“A neighbor, Maria Murphy, saw it [the boy] soon in tears. He appeared shocked, clearly shaken and distraught,” Ms. Nicholson continued.

Miss Murphy alerted the police and the couple were soon arrested.

When Macula was dragged into court in November, he told a judge he had returned to the UK – where he was arrested at Liverpool Airport – to live with his uncle following a family tragedy.

“He told the court his mother died in Slovakia on August 31, 2014, his father is now in prison in Slovakia and that’s why he came to England to see his uncle as he had no one else,” explained Mrs Nicholson.

Makula played a lesser role in the robberies and “came back to face the consequences of his actions,” Nadia Semlali said mitigatingly.

She added that Makula fled court in 2014 because he was “just afraid of what was going to happen because of his young age.”

Makula, who was previously of good character, was sentenced to 18 months in prison by recorder Ben Irwin after admitting to two counts of robbery, attempted robbery and breach of bail.

Godla was sentenced to more than three years in a juvenile delinquent institute in 2014, the court heard.