At the home of professional cyclist Mark Cavendish, a robbery at knifepoint was committed, and one individual has been found guilty.

On November 27, 2021, Romario Henry, 31, of Bell Green in Lewisham, southeast London, broke into Mr. Cavendish’s residence in Ongar, Essex.

The 31-year-old was found guilty of two charges of robbery, and on February 7th, he will be punished.

By the same jury, Oludewa Okorosobo, 28, of Flaxman Road, Camberwell, south London, was declared not guilty.

Following 14 hours and 35 minutes of deliberation at Chelmsford Crown Court, Henry was found guilty by a jury verdict of 10 in favor and 2 against.

At a prior hearing, Ali Sesay, 28, of Holding Street in Rainham, Kent, pleaded guilty to two charges of robbery.

Mark Cavendish testifying at Chelmsford Crown Court Image Source: PA Media/Elizabeth Cook
Mark Cavendish recalled seeing “people pretty close behind her” when his wife ran into their bedroom.
Jurors were informed about the theft of two Richard Mille watches, each worth £700,000, as well as phones and a Louis Vuitton suitcase by a group of masked attackers.

According to the prosecution, “male voices” could be heard from below when Mr. Cavendish and his wife Peta were in bed with their three-year-old child.

The invaders “dragged” her husband from his feet, according to Mrs. Cavendish, and “began pounding him.” Her husband had been released from the hospital approximately four days prior after breaking his ribs in a cycling accident.

She described it as a “Rambo-style” knife and said one of them placed a long black knife to his throat while asking, “Where’s the watches?” and “Do you want me to stab you?”

In order to prevent her child from seeing the heist, she claimed to have covered them with a duvet.

Oludewa Okorosobo, 28, and Romario Henry, 31 (left), both appeared in court at Chelmsford Crown Court.
Romario Henry, 31, was convicted guilty of two counts of robbery, but Oludewa Okorosobo, 28, was exonerated on both counts (see image caption, left).
She said they stole her custom, one-of-a-kind £300,000 Richard Mille watch from a bedside table and her husband’s £400,000 Richard Mille watch, which he wore while racing.

The 37-year-old athlete, who shares the record for most Tour de France stage victories, served as the designer’s brand ambassador.

After discovering the downstairs patio door had been broken, the couple called the police at 02:35 GMT.

Detectives claimed they discovered Sesay’s DNA, along with Mrs. Cavendish’s mobile phone, outside the house.

Watch worn by Mark Cavendish
Source image: ESSEX POLICE
Before snatching her husband’s watch off a windowsill, Ms. Cavendish said the robbers were “quite definite” about a watch.
Henry testified that he was in the Mercedes Benz that traveled from London to Ongar, but he insisted that he was drugged up and unaware of any crimes being committed.

After being stabbed in the leg in September 2021, Mr. Okorosobo claimed in a prepared statement to police that he was “unable to do any” of the alleged offenses and that “any human could see I’m incapable of doing this.”

Before his phone connected that evening to cell towers in the Ongar area, he claimed to have lent it to Sesay.

When he was found not guilty, Mr. Okorosobo, who told the court that he had previously worked as a delivery driver, in hospitality at the Olympic Stadium in 2012, and as a personal trainer, buried his head in his hands.

Henry didn’t appear to respond.

Jo Jobson, from Plaistow in east London, and George Goddard, from Loughton in Essex, were two further individuals who were mentioned throughout the trial as suspects but have not yet been found.