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A group has been jailed for a total of 36 years for the kidnapping, torture and sexual abuse of a man.
Surrey and Sussex Major Crime Team launched an investigation after receiving a call from a neighbour of the victim.
The neighbour said the victim had been taken from his home by two or three men wearing balaclavas on April 26 2025.
The victim was taken to an address in Reigate, where he was blindfolded and force-fed, police said, before being rushed to a house Farnborough before being repeatedly tortured and sexually assaulted.
The group would spend the next day sending text messages to the victim’s brother, making a series of demands.
At around 4:30pm that same day, officers from Hampshire Constabulary located the victim.
Appearing at Guildford Crown Court on Tuesday, Reece Armstrong, 30, and Tarelle Thompson, 28, were sentenced after being found guilty of conspiracy to kidnap following a six-week trial in December 2025.
Armstrong was also found guilty of causing grievous bodily harm with intent and two counts of possession of an offensive weapon.
The pair were both handed nine years behind bars.
Lorna Swyer and Sebastian Love, both aged 21, were both jailed for three years and four months after pleading guilty to conspiracy to kidnap.
Levi Burton, 31, received the longest sentence of the group, being handed 12 years behind bars after being found guilty of sexual assault as well as taking part in the kidnapping plot.
Senior Investigating Officer, Detective Chief Inspector Kimball Edey, said: “As soon as we became aware that a kidnap had taken place, officers worked at pace to locate the victim as quickly as possible.
“He was located the day after he’d been kidnapped, and had been subjected to what amounted to torture at the hands of Armstrong, Burton, Love, Swyer and Thompson.
“No one should have to endure the ordeal they had put him through and the sentencing today has ensured they will spend a long time in prison, where they belong.”
