The leader of a 'Reservoir Dogs' gang who kidnapped a wealthy man off the street and forced his terrified family to pay a £48,000 ransom has been jailed for seven years.

Ryan Smith, 22, his brother Lee Smith, 23, and accomplice Dean Davis, 21, used the names Mr Black, Mr White and Mr Blue while they held 33 year-old Darren Wickham hostage for 24 hours.

In a scene straight from the Quentin Tarantino movie, they threatened to pour a can of petrol over him as he sat tied up in their safe house in east London.

Detectives listened in as the gang made a series of blood-curdling phone calls to Mr Wickam's family demanding up to £150,000.

The hostage's brother Adam then bravely carried the ransom money to the drop-off point escorted by undercover officers to trap the kidnappers red-handed in January 2006.

Lee 'Mr White' Smith and Dean 'Mr Blue' Davis were arrested but Ryan 'Mr Black' Smith went on the run and was only caught in April this year after an appeal on BBC's Crimewatch programme.

Dean Davis was jailed for five years after pleading guilty while Lee Smith, who was convicted after two trials, received an indeterminate sentence with a minimum term of six years.

Judge Roger Chapple sentenced Ryan Smith to seven years after he admitted conspiracy to kidnap, conspiracy to falsely imprison and conspiracy to blackmail.

The judge said: "This was serious organised crime. It was a very carefully, almost meticulously planned operation and it was ruthlessly operated.

"Mr Wickham was held captive for a period of 24 hours and it was a terrifying experience for him.

"The abject fear of the Wickham family is palpable and clear from the tapes of those phone calls. You took a leading part."

The Old Bailey heard Mr Wickham, from East Grinstead, was targeted after he was heard boasting about his family's wealth during a holiday to St Lucia.

On his return he was lured into a deal to buy 5kg of cannabis for £3,500 at Coulsdon South railway station in Surrey on January 2, 2006.

The gang, wearing balaclavas and armed with a gun, bundled Mr Wickham into a white van as his girlfriend watched in horror.

Mr Wickham told jurors: "It was scary, scary, scary. They gave me a good beating, they were wearing balaclavas and gloves.

"They used police plastic ties and tied me up. I thought I was going somewhere to get tortured.

"They were all Reservoir Dogs characters - Mr White, Mr Blue, Mr Black. Mr White was the dangerous one. He sounded mean.

"They had a can of petrol and they said: 'Sniff the petrol, we'll burn you'."

Mr Wickham was driven around while calls were made to his family demanding £150,000 and at one stage he was allowed to speak to his mother over the phone.

He was taken to an address in Beckton, east London, and tied up with tape over his mouth and eyes.

Unknown to the kidnappers, the family had called police and an operation was set up to record the ransom calls.

Undercover officers gathered the £48,500 ransom and took Mr Wickham's brother Adam to the drop-off point at a bin near Pitfield Street, Shoreditch.

They watched as a man collected the rucksack and took it to the house of Ryan Smith's girlfriend who lived opposite.

Mr Wickham was later released, still blindfolded, miles away in the Woolwich area and the van sped away.

He was found with bruises all over his body and burn on his arm from a cigarette lighter.

Police raided the house and arrested Davis and Lee Smith but Ryan Smith escaped from the window.

Mr Clark added: "Ryan Smith was being actively searched. He was listed as wanted and appeals were made both on Crimestoppers and on Crimewatch.

"In early April this year Crimewatch received information and police attended an address in Homerton."

On his arrest Ryan Smith told officers: "I'm glad it's all over" and confessed to his involvement.

He claimed the operation had been organised by a man called 'Gus' who met Mr Wickham in St Lucia.

Lee Smith, of Freshfield Avenue, Hackney, east London, was convicted of conspiracy to kidnap, conspiracy to falsely imprison and conspiracy to blackmail between April 6, 2005, and January 4, 2006.

Davis, of Imperial Avenue, Stoke Newington, north London, admitted conspiracy to falsely imprison and conspiracy to blackmail.

Ryan Smith's girlfriend Tanisha Johnson, 21, was cleared of all charges.