Canley post office robber jailed for six years

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A ROBBER who stormed a Coventry post office armed with an industrial paint scraper has been jailed for six years.

Nicolas Bates, aged 22, threatened a cashier – who believed the decorating tool was an axe – before demanding the takings from Charter Post Office, in Canley.

He grabbed them around the neck before dragging him along the floor during the raid at 9.45am on July 6 before panicking and leaving the shop empty-handed.

Bates, of Glebe Close, Canley, was arrested just over a mile away after a police officer became suspicious when he spotted him sweating and out of breath in Westwood Heath Road.

Police dog handlers traced Bates’ tracks back through the woods towards the post office and a sniffer dog unearthed the weapon and clothing he had used during the robbery attempt, which he had hidden under a fallen tree.

Bates pleaded guilty to attempted robbery at Coventry Crown Court and was jailed for six years.

Investigating officer Det Sgt Gareth Mitchell said: “Bates hid a change of clothing in the woods but his flustered, sweating appearance – plus the fact his trousers were wet after running through long grass in the woods – alerted a local officer who detained him while inquiries were made.

“A paint scraper may seem an odd choice of weapon but it was a large, heavy duty implement which the staff believed was an axe or hatchet of some sort.

"He behaved very aggressively leaving staff and one elderly customer badly shaken.”

He added: “We welcome the strong sentence handed down by the court.

“Coventry Police are clamping down on robbery across the city; anyone who tries to take property from a member of the public using force should prepare themselves for a jail sentence.”

At the start of July Coventry Police launched a campaign to purge the city’s streets of robbers – phase two of an operation called Serve & Protect.

It has already seen about 40 robbery suspects arrested.



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