A WOMAN who helped a group of thugs carry out a “nasty and vicious” assault on a man has been handed a suspended prison sentence.

Chantelle Reynolds, 25, of Hillary Close, Heybridge, aided her brother Shane Reynolds, 27, Adam Lee, 21, and Samuel George, 29, in locating and assaulting Timothy Dowley who they falsely claimed had stolen drugs from them.

At the time, Reynolds lived in the flat opposite Mr Dowley’s partner, where the assault took place.

Reynolds had admitted grievous bodily harm and burglary by joint enterprise, but disputed that she knew her co-defendants, sentenced in August, were carrying a baseball bat, crowbar and a knife during the incident.

At a hearing at Chelmsford Crown Court on Friday, Reynolds told Recorder Simon Mayo QC she had only directed co-defendant Adam Lee into the flat block, in Spital Road, but played no further part in the enterprise.

But the victim’s partner disputed Reynolds version of events. She told the court: “When they first came in they didn’t have their weapons drawn, but after they searched and came out again they were drawn. At that time, Chantelle spotted Timothy’s shoes in the kitchen of my flat and said ‘his shoes are there, he must be there’ and they went back in with weapons drawn and found him.”

Recorder Simon Mayo ruled Reynolds was fully aware of the weapons used.

Passing sentence, he said: “This was a nasty and vicious assault which involved the use of weapons that could have caused severe physical injury and death. You, Miss Reynolds, were very much aware of this.”

Reynolds was handed a 24-month prison sentence suspended for two years as well as a suspended provision order, a 40-day rehabilitation order and 200 hours of unpaid work to complete within 12 months.

Recorder Mayo added: “You have not got away with anything today, and it is only by the skin of your teeth that you did not face an immediate prison sentence.”