Would-be robber disguised in zebra print onesie caught after police followed tracks in the snow

A man who tried to rob a shopkeeper at knifepoint while disguised in a zebra print onesie, was recognised as soon as he opened his mouth and demanded cash, a court was told. Jack Brooks, 22, had been in The Bottle Shop in Burnley, Lancashire, earlier to buy drink and had even been given a free bottle of alcohol by victim Mushtaq Ahmed as he had been so friendly.

Mr Ahmed, who was working in the convenience store alone, thought it might be a joke when the defendant, by now wearing the zebra outfit, walked in again an hour later. But he soon realised it wasn’t, when Brooks pulled a large carving knife on him, terrifying him, Burnley Crown Court heard.



The hearing was told how Brooks fled from the shop empty-handed after courageous Mr Ahmed got some metal piping and challenged him. He then made off with some men with a bike. Police followed the tracks in the snow and a resident told them Brooks had just gone into a house in the onesie.

Brooks, of Burnley, admitted attempted robbery and possessing a bladed article, on January 17th. The defendant, a convicted arsonist and burglar, was jailed for two years eight months. Judge Beverly Lunt said Brooks had been a persistent offender since 2011. She said: “It wasn’t a particularly clever robbery. You were quite quickly recognised.”