Armed teen yobs in robbery spree

The terrified victims - aged between 13 and 16 - were pistol whipped and subjected to mock shootings.

The firearms - realistic copies of a Beretta 9mm, a Heckler and Koch 9mm and a Riger MkII - were pressed to the head or throat of some of those targeted in the street robberies and the trigger pulled until it made a clicking sound, revealed Mr Bernard Linnemann, prosecuting at Wolverhampton Crown Court.

He said the victims 'thought the guns were real'.

The drama started after a confrontation between pupils from two schools that had been expected to take place in the dark at Jubilee Park, Tipton between 7 and 8pm on November 20 failed to materialise.

The robbers - led by 19-year-old Tyrone McKen - struck as the crowd that had gathered to watch the expected clash started to disperse.

First to be targeted were two youths aged 13 and 16 who were standing outside a chip shop in nearby Bourne Avenue when McKen drew a revolver from the waistband of his trousers.

He hit one of the teenagers over the head and 'patted' him down but found nothing. The other victim had the barrel of a gun put to his throat and the trigger pulled while his pockets were fruitlessly searched. The pair were then allowed to run away.

Less than an hour later the gang struck again, this time in Powis Avenue, where four horrified youths - two aged 14 and the others 15 - had a gun pulled on them by McKen and were ordered to stand against a wall.

At least one other firearm was then produced as the victims were pistol whipped and robbed of a mobile phone, an E-cigarette and £2 cash. A gun was held to the throat of one victim and the trigger pulled in another mock shooting.

Police arrested the robbers in an underpass close by. The weapons were two BB guns and a .22 air gun painted black to appear more realistic. One of the defendants was also armed with a craft knife.

Mr Simon Hanns defending McKen, from no fixed address, who had no previous convictions, said: "Nothing can take away from the gravity of this terrifying ordeal. All this happened within 60 minutes. It was an hour of madness."

The defendants admitted four robberies, two attempted robberies and possession of imitation firearms. McKen was given four years six months detention in a Young Offenders Institution, while the 15-year-old received three years detention. The final defendant - 14 at the time of the offence but now 15 - received a detention and training order lasting 18 months because it would not take account of the time spent in custody waiting for the case to come to court.

Judge Martin Walsh told the trio they had all played a part in 'terrifying robberies involving firearms'.