Wellingborough man jailed after fleeing to Latvia following 2013 assault
A man who attacked his brother’s landlord over a £30 rent dispute and then left the UK has finally been jailed more than a decade later
A man has been jailed more than ten years after carrying out a violent assault in Wellingborough and leaving the country.
Elvjis Penikis was arrested at Stansted Airport in January while trying to fly back to Latvia, having returned to the UK to visit family at Christmas. The 37-year-old, who has no fixed address, pleaded guilty at Northampton Crown Court in February and was sentenced on 4 July to five years and three months in prison.
The attack happened on Shearwater Lane in Wellingborough on 18 May 2013 after a row over £30 in rent. Penikis and another man punched and kicked the landlord repeatedly before stamping on his head and causing a serious head injury. The victim later recovered.
The second man admitted the offence and was sentenced shortly after, but Penikis left the country and had been wanted by police ever since.
A police spokesperson said: “I am really pleased to see Elvjis Penikis handed this lengthy sentence because it not only reflects the brutality of the assault he committed but also his continued attempts to evade police.
“I hope this case demonstrates this Force’s determination to bring offenders to book, no matter how much time has passed. Penikis had avoided prison for more than ten years but is now behind bars.”