A man who was part of a gang who robbed two sex workers inside a flat has been jailed.

Ionut Sofroniei, 25, of Wooldridge Road, Feltham, south west London, was sentenced yesterday following a trial at St Albans Crown Court.

The court heard that Sofroniei and two other unidentified men turned up to a flat in Observer Drive, Watford, on January 17 2018.

Inside the flat, there were two Thai sex workers - a 38-year-old woman and a 38-year-old trans woman.

The men arrived, having booked in for a massage.

However once inside, the court heard that the two sex workers were threatened with a spanner and ordered into a bedroom.

The flat was ransacked and the gang stole more than £1,100 in goods, as well as jewellery and electrical goods.

Sofroniei, who is originally from Romania, was identified after one of the victims searched Facebook using the mobile phone number that was used to book the appointment.

He was arrested in August 2019 after he was stopped while trying to board a flight to Lithuania. The other two men remain unidentified.

At court yesterday, Sofroniei was jailed for seven years after he was found guilty of two counts of robbery .

Detective Inspector Jason Finnegan, from the Watford local crime unit, said: "Sofroniei’s despicable actions show him to be a dangerous and manipulative individual who is willing to threaten people to get what he wants.

"This has been a protracted case but we caught up with Sofroniei in the end, so I am pleased to see justice being done for both of the victims."