Masked man in armed shop raid given jail

A masked man who burst into an off-licence in the Black Country with a gun-wielding accomplice was today starting a four-year jail sentence.

Edward George leaned over the counter of the Broadway Wine Lodge in Wednesfield in an attempt to grab the till while his friend pointed an imitation firearm at two of the staff members.

One of the workers bravely threw his body on top of the till and successfully prevented it from being stolen, Wolverhampton Crown Court heard yesterday.

Miss Helena Miller, prosecuting, said that George and his accomplice burst into the shop in Graiseley Lane at about 8pm on October 8 last year.

George, aged 21, leaned over the counter and shouted: "Give me the money from the till."