Machete-wielding thug, 16, threatened to chop off Aled Jones’ arm unless he handed over £17,000 Rolex watch, court hears as youth pleads guilty

• Jones, 52, was confronted by a robber while strolling in Chiswick, west London

A machete-wielding thug threatened to chop off TV star Aled Jones’s arm unless he handed over his £17,000 Rolex watch, a youth court was told.

The Songs of Praise presenter was confronted by a 16-year-old as he walked with his son Lucas in Chiswick, West London, last month.

Other threats were made to the 52-year-old before he handed over his expensive watch during the terrifying robbery.

Wimbledon Youth Court was told the machete wielding teen was captured on CCTV as he fled the scene.

When he was arrested police found the weapon in his bedroom and he was also wearing the same black track suit top and bottom and black training shoes from the July 7 robbery.

Aled Jones and his wife Claire, who was not present when a machete-wielding thug accosted her husband. This picture, taken days later, shows the presenter wearing an Apple watch after his Rolex was taken

The Songs of Praise presenter was confronted by a 16-year-old as he walked with his son Lucas in Chiswick, West London, last month

The teen, who cannot be named for legal reasons, turned up two hours late for his trial by which time his solicitor Gero Di Piazza entered a guilty plea on his behalf to a charge of robbery and possession of a bladed weapon.

When the 6ft tall teen arrived with his father he pleaded guilty and was bailed to appear at another youth court in September for sentencing. The court was told he was in the care of the local authority since the Rolex robbery.

District Judge Andrew Sweet told him the offences were so serious he could face a youth detention order or the case be sent to the crown court.

Jones and his son were not at court but had been prepared to give evidence via a video link as the teen had initially pleaded not guilty.

They appeared briefly on a video screen sitting side by side as the judge told them they would not be needed to give evidence.

Prosecutor Robert Simpson had told the court Jones and his son were walking along Chiswick Road around 5.30pm when they were confronted by the youth.

Mr Simpson said he produced a machete from his tracksuit bottoms and demanded the watch.

He said: ‘He threatened to cut off his arm and other threats to obtain the Rolex watch he was wearing.

The Songs of Praise star, 52, was strolling around Chiswick in west London with his son Lucas, 18, when they were confronted at around 5:30pm on Friday (father and son pictured in Notting Hill earlier this year) 

‘Mr Jones took off the watch and handed it to the defendant who made off.’

How much is a Rolex Daytona?  

The Rolex Daytona is one of the most desirable Rolex designs.

It was first introduced in 1963 to ‘meet the demands of professional racing drivers’.

Its ‘highly reliable’ chronograph and bezel with tachymetric scale allows it to perfectly measure average speeds of up to 400 kilometres per hour.

It was named after the Florida City of Daytona which was home to the first stock car race, held on Daytona Beach Road Course in 1958.

Today there are a number of variations of the watch ranging in prices from around £17,000 to just under £40,000.

It’s dial carries ‘Daytona’ in red letters. 

Aled’s watch, the Rolex Daytona, is worth around £17,000 

The youth court was told the police obtained ‘high quality’ CCTV footage of the thief leaving the scene.

One of the cameras captured the teen pushing the machete back into his track suit bottoms.

A five-minute clip showing the knife robber leaving the area had been due to be shown to the court.

Mr Simpson said a photograph of the teen was circulated on a police bulletin board and was recognised by an officer who had known the teen for up to two years.

When police went to arrest the 16-year-old he was wearing the same black Nike tracksuit top and bottom as seen in the CCTV.

They also found the machete used in the robbery.

Jones took part in an ID parade but was unable to pick out the defendant. His son Lucas,18, was able to pick out the teen.

The proceedings at Wimbledon Youth Court were initially delayed when the teen failed to show up on time.

The court had been scheduled to start at 10am but the teenager did not arrive until almost two hours later.

District Judge Andrew Sweet said he would accept a guilty plea from his solicitor and the trial proceeded in his absence.

Jones , from Bangor, North Wales became a star at 14 when his ­version of Walking in the Air, from Christmas film The Snowman, reached No5 in 1985.

He was made an MBE in 2013 for services to music and broadcasting and charitable services and is now a regular presenter of Songs of Praise and hosts a morning radio show on Classic FM.

His daughter Emilia is a rising star in her own right appearing in the acclaimed film CODA and Netflix series Locke & Key.

Aled has previously ­spoken of his love of watches in the past but said he preferred his ­luxury British Bremont timepiece.

The former choirboy reportedly did ‘not put up a fight’ and gave the watch to the robber to prevent him or his son (pictured in Notting Hill earlier this month) from being harmed 

Earlier days: The pair pictured in 2015 at the premiere of Snoopy and Charlie Brown: The Peanuts Movie

He said in a 2016 interview: ‘It’s a Codebreaker watch that has part of the Enigma in it. It incorporates wood from hut six in Bletchley Park where Alan Turing helped shorten the Second World War.

‘So it’s a huge part of history and it beats a Rolex or Cartier any day.’

The theft of expensive watches has exploded in London with shock figures showing 6,109 luxury watches were stolen last year.

Jones was the latest victim of a spate of watch crimes in London over the last 18 months involving celebrities.

In April last year, former professional boxer Amir Khan had his diamond-encrusted watch – worth around £72,000, stolen in east London in a separate, unrelated incident.

The 2004 Olympic silver medalist, 36, was targeted as he and his wife Faryal Makhdoom, 31, left the Sahara Grill restaurant in Leyton, east London, on April 18 last year.

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