JAILED: Wolverhampton bus cash box raider who struck five times in six days

Balaclava-clad Ryan Jones 'took seconds' to hop aboard National Express buses in Wolverhampton and prise away the boxes, which each contained up to £300 in bus fares.

And he used his mother's Ford Fiesta as a getaway car.

The 34-year-old had an accomplice who has previously been put behind bars.

Between November 18 and 24 Jones targeted stationary buses at the end of their routes and was able to lever off the cash vaults from vehicles twice at School Road in Tettenhall, Wolverhampton bus park in Broadlands and Patshull Avenue in Fordhouses.

He made another attempted smash and grab attempt in Codsall but came away empty handed.

Police launched a probe after the spate of cash box thefts.

Jones, from Bittell Close in Wolverhampton, used his mother's silver Ford Fiesta to escape on a number of occasions although she was unaware of what he was getting up to.

On four of the five thefts he was accompanied by Shaun McNay who often boarded the bus first and tried to distract the driver, including asking for a day saver ticket on one occasion.

The 35-year-old from Hurstbourne Crescent, East Park, had been previously jailed at Wolverhampton Magistrates Court for his part in the plots.

Jones - sent down for two years - has been a serial offender for the last 15 years with 114 separate offences and 52 convictions to his name mainly for theft and burglary.

He had only been released in February last year after being jailed in 2012 for a 'serious offence', the court was told.

David Bratt, defending him, said after years of 'hopelessness and criminality' Jones had seemingly turned his life around after getting a job and starting a new relationship.

But the barrister added after a period of working away he could not access medication he had been getting for a drug problem and turned to heroin as a substitute.

Mr Bratt said this led to a new addiction which fuelled his return to crime.

He added: "He is angry and frustrated with himself. He had a glimpse of how things could be different and he is determined this will never happen again. No doubt he has probably said this before but this time he has something to look forward to."

Jones, appearing at the hearing at Wolverhampton Crown Court on Thursday via video link from HMP Hewell, admitted to the four counts of theft and one count of attempted theft. He sat with his head bowed as he was handed two years in prison.

Judge Peter Barrie said: "It is deeply disappointing to see you back in court having been released from serving a significant sentence. It seems you had some prospect of turning your life around but sadly with this offending it all came to an end.

"These were clearly offences carefully and deliberately planned. You were armed with a crow bar and dressed in a balaclava or hoody to conceal your identity.

"Although they were not robbery it does seem to me in the circumstances of these offences, being in the evening or late at night, they do amount to the threat of force."