Knife-wielding robber jailed for £11,000 Rowley Regis shop raid
A masked robber who burst through the doors of a Black Country shop and stole £11,000 has been jailed for seven years.
Terrified staff at the Spar in Rowley Regis were threatened with a screwdriver and a seven-inch knife when John Cleaver and another man targeted the shop.
One member of staff had a weapon held to his temple while the duo emptied the safe and the till during the raid at the Harvest Road store in November last year.
But Wolverhampton Crown Court heard that Cleaver was identified through CCTV and when he was arrested, police discovered photographs of some of his associates posing with the £11,000 haul.
Prosecutor Mrs Amy Jackson said the robbery took place at about 7.20pm on November 16. She explained: "Two men ran in and both had their faces covered, one with a mask and the other with a scarf. This defendant had a knife and jumped on the counter, shouting at a staff member to open the safe."
Mrs Jackson told the court that following the robbery, Cleaver, his accomplice and another man who was acting as a 'lookout' fled in a car that was stolen in another robbery.
She said: "This defendant was identified through the CCTV, which matched his clothing. There was also a footprint from the counter of the shop hat matched his footwear."
The prosecutor said 32-year-old Cleaver, of Queen Street, Pennsnett, had a string of convictions and had previously served a 10-year sentence for robbery and burglary offences. Mr
John Roe, defending, said his client, who admitted robbery and possession of a knife, had been drinking and taking drugs on the night of the incident and that there had been no element of 'pre-planning'.
"He had spent some time on the Spar car park with others, discussing the robbery, and he was persuaded to go along with it. Drink and drugs is the only way he can explain why he decided to do it," added Mr Roe.
