A MAN who held up staff at a Co-op store at knifepoint was granted police bail – and went on to carry out an identical robbery at a nearby Tesco store.
But even though he wore a mask, assistants at both stores knew regular customer Keith Taylor so well that one of them even referred to him by his first name in her witness statement.
So Taylor, 45, of High Street, Studley, was quickly arrested again, and at Warwick Crown Court he was jailed for five years and four months after pleading guilty to both robberies.
Prosecutor Marcus Harry said on January 24 Taylor went into the Co-op store in Alcester Road, Studley, at 9.30pm, when there were four members of staff working, but no customers.
A regular customer, Taylor had not long been banned for shoplifting, and the staff recognised him immediately despite an attempt to disguise himself with a mask and his hood pulled up.
He opened the door to get behind the counter ‘with some force,’ brandishing a 12-inch metal rod swearing and demanding they open the till.
An assistant tried to comply, but when he couldn’t Taylor pulled out a knife and repeated his demand until another member of staff managed to open it.
Taylor put about £200 in cash into a plastic bag and left, warning the terrified staff not to try to follow him.
He was arrested the next day and tested positive for drugs, but after answering no comment to questions when he was interviewed, he was given police bail.
“This was the first offence he had committed for some 12 years. There was a suspicion it was a desperate one-off act to fund drugs or to pay off a drugs debt,” said Mr Harry.
But it was not a one-off – on February 15 Taylor went to the nearby Tesco Express where, although he was again wearing a mask, staff recognised him from tattoos on his hand.
He jumped over the counter brandishing two knives and made a similar demand for money before escaping with £1,070.
The staff were able to name him, and he was arrested when police saw him two days later, but again gave no comment replies when he was interviewed, added Mr Harry.
Kevin Grego, defending, said: “He has both a cocaine and a heroin addiction, and he had run up drug debts and was in fear of his life if he didn’t pay them. He hopes to deal with his drug problem while in custody.”
Jailing Taylor, Judge Sylvia de Bertodano told him: “When you go in with a knife and wave it around, whatever you intend, it is terrifying to the staff; and if you have a knife in your hand, things can go very badly wrong indeed.
“Your problem throughout your grown-up life has been class A drugs. Those drugs have ruined your life, but they don’t have to do so for ever.
“I very much hope that the positive side of today is that it will give you some opportunity to turn your back on them.”
