Rowley Regis armed robber recognised thanks to bullet necklace

The distinctive piece of jewellery meant Daniel Bray was instantly recognised despite wearing yellow sunglasses and hiding the lower part of his face, a court was told.

He had left his watch at the Londis store in Powke Lane, Rowley Regis, as security after being allowed to leave with alcohol that had not been paid for earlier in the day, revealed prosecutor Mr Paul Reid.

The 22-year-old was wearing dark glasses and had half of his face covered when he returned and pulled a gun on manager Mr Saranjit Randhawa, who immediately knew who it was because of the necklace, Wolverhampton Crown Court heard.

Bray pointed the gun at the shop manager and lunged at him before walking out empty handed, concluded the prosecutor.

The defendant was arrested after walking back in to the store at the same time as a uniformed police officer was taking a statement from Mr Randhawa about the attempted robbery.

Bray broke down in tears and claimed he had been threatened by a drug dealer over an unpaid debt, the court heard. The air pistol used in the bungled raid was found during a search of his home.

Mr Jasvir Mann, defending, said: "This was a fairly inept attempt to rob the shop but that does not make it any less serious.

"This young man was under what he considered to be intolerable pressure over the debt and had been drinking heavily."

Unemployed Bray, from Dunhill Walk, Rowley Regis, admitted the May 14 attempted robbery and possession of an imitation firearm on the same date.