A masked drug addict who attempted to rob a Perth city centre store at knifepoint was jailed for 34 months.
High on Valium, repeat offender Graeme Bell burst into Corky’s Premier Newsagent to demand that proprietor Tahir Chaudhary empty the till.
He eventually fled empty-handed after being challenged by a mystery have-a-go-hero customer and then compounded his failure by stripping off his balaclava in full view of CCTV cameras.
The 33-year-old was swiftly traced by police officers but claimed he would never have been involved in such an incident and denied owning a knife.
He finally admitted his guilt after being confronted with what his solicitor said was “sufficient evidence” but the agent’s bid to use his “early” plea to secure a more lenient sentence fell on deaf ears.
Sheriff Fiona Tait told Bell that there was no alternative to a custodial sentence, commenting: “This offence must have been terrifying for the shopkeeper particularly as it involved a knife.”
Bell, of Uist Place in Perth, boasts an unenviable, four-page criminal record, littered with offences of theft, shoplifting, assault, housebreaking and misuse of drugs.
He was sentenced to six months imprisonment in 2008 after he admitted stealing two charity boxes.
That same year, following a lengthy trial, a jury delivered a not proven verdict in favour of Bell after he was accused of robbing a woman at knifepoint while heavily under the influence of drugs.
He remained out of trouble for some time following his release, while acting as a carer for his ailing mother.
Solicitor Billy Somerville, however, admitted that his client slipped back into bad ways and began abusing Valium following her death, some 12 weeks before the attempted robbery.
Depute fiscal Charmaine Gilmartin told Perth Sheriff Court that the shopkeeper had been the only person in the newsagents when Bell entered.
“They were stocking shelves when they heard a male voice demanding ‘give me the money’. His face was covered with what appeared to be a balaclava.
“The complainer was startled and began to back away, at which point they noticed that the accused was holding a knife in his left hand.
“He was repeating ‘give me the money’ and kept the knife pointed at the complainer’s stomach as they backed away until they were effectively pinned against the counter.”
Mrs Gilmartin said the robbery attempt had failed as an unknown member of the public entered the store and bravely ended the stand-off.
“They noticed what was happening and tried to intervene by grabbing hold of the accused,” she said.
“He fled from the shop, taking the covering from his face as he ran. Both the complainer and witness attempted to give chase but he escaped though they did see the direction in which he ran.
“Police officers were able to view CCTV footage showing the accused outside the store with his balaclava removed and his face clearly visible.”
Another witness reported having seen Bell standing outside the shop with the balaclava in his hand.
Solicitor Billy Somerville added: “Mr Bell says that he did not intend to cause the shopkeeper any physical harm.
“He does, however, accept that his victim would not have known this and he also accepts that they would have suffered psychological harm as a result.”
Bell admitted assaulting Mr Chaudhary at Corky’s on June 21 this year and attempting to rob him of a sum of money.
Following the case, Mr Chaudhary, 51, welcomed the sentence on Bell.
“The police said he would get a long time,” said Mr Chaudhary. “It was frightening, it is the first time something like this has happened in my life. It took a few days to recover.”
He thanked the customer who intervened during the attack, saying: “He is not a regular but I had seen him before. I was surprised sometimes people don’t want to get involved.”