‘Dangerous’ man jailed for 6 years for knifepoint robbery and multiple shoplifting offences

A man who held a knife to the throat of a service station worker during a night time robbery in Hertfordshire was later charged with 11 shoplifting offences in Peterborough – two of which included assaulting staff.

Karl Jones, 33, of no fixed address in Peterborough, was jailed at Luton Crown Court on February 22 for a total of six years and three months for robbery, possession of a knife in a public place, 11 counts of theft from a shop and two counts of assault.

He had previously pleaded guilty to robbery and possession of a bladed article in connection with the incident, which occurred at Budgens in The Heights, Hemel Hempstead, during the early hours of Saturday 4 November 2023.

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In Hemel Hempstead, the court heard he approached a member of staff at the service window at around 2.30am and asked him to pick up some items from inside the shop.

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As he did so, Jones climbed through the window and ran towards the member of staff, grabbing him before producing a knife.

He held it to the victim’s throat while forcing him to remove cash from the till.

The victim did so, before unlocking the door for Jones to escape.

Around £450 in cash was stolen.

An investigation was launched, and Jones was identified as the suspect through CCTV enquiries.

Prolific shoplifter Karl Jones with more than 50 theft convictions has been sent to prison and banned from 14 shops

He was arrested in Hemel Hempstead on Wednesday 8 November and subsequently charged and remanded into custody.

At court he was handed a five-year sentence for the robbery, plus six months for possession of a bladed article.

In addition, he was given a further nine months for 11 shoplifting offences which occurred in Cambridgeshire and Hemel Hempstead, plus six months for two common assaults, to run concurrently.

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The total sentence handed down was six years and three months.

He was also given a seven-year criminal behaviour order (CBO) which will set out conditions he must abide by on his release from prison.

These state he must not go to any of the following stores: Next, Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Co-op, Waitrose, TK Maxx, Superdrug, B&Q, Aldi, Boots chemist, PC World/Currys, Marks and Spencer, B&M Bargains and Asda.

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He must also not enter any shop, supermarket, or store without having means to pay for goods.

The shoplifting offences covered a period between September and October last year when he stole £1,200 worth of goods including alcohol, meat, laundry products and homeware from Sainsbury’s in Bretton, Next at Brotherhood Retail Park, and Co-Op in Eye.

Detective Constable Michael Knight, who led the investigation in Hertfordshire, said: “This was an extremely frightening ordeal for the victim.

“Thankfully, he wasn’t hurt during the incident but has been left with harrowing memories of what happened that day. I hope this sentence can bring him some closure and enable him to move forward.

“Jones is a dangerous man with several convictions, and I’m pleased that he is now off our streets.”

PC Sian Makin, who investigated the Cambridgeshire offences, said: “Jones is a dangerous and prolific criminal who has an extensive history of offending including theft, drug offences, fraud, and possession of weapons.

“Despite previous sentences of community orders, conditional discharges, suspended sentences and serving time in prison, he has continued to offend.

“By having a CBO in place, we will have greater powers to tackle Jones’ offending once he is released from prison. Should he be found in breach of any of the conditions, he will be arrested and put back before the courts.”