Jail for bungling thief who threatened bookies with garden shears

A bungling robber who threatened terrified bookmaker staff with a pair of garden shears has been jailed for four and a half years. Leigh Barry, 28, was caught on CCTV trying to break security glass with first a brick, then a chair.



Barry, from Chelmsley Wood in Birmingham, grabbed a handful of pound coins from the counter, dropping most of them as he fled the store. Last week, he was jailed for 18 months over the botched raid. He was also handed a further three years due to his part in a bank robbery from June last year.

DCI Simon Wallis, from West Midlands Police, said: "Despite his relentless attempts to get through to the counter Barry clearly didn’t have the strength to break the glass and instead settled for a handful of pound coins. As he went to leave the dropped most of the coins and spent several minutes picking them off the floor.


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"This clear CCTV footage made a very strong case against him and he pleaded guilty when he appeared at court. While his efforts may look ridiculous, he was clearly a violent offender and is no longer a danger to members of our communities."