A robber who targeted an Aberdeen newsagents armed with a knife has been jailed – after he handed himself in five years later.
Simon Leys donned a boiler suit and painted his face before going into Sunny’s on the city’s Urquhart Road.
He terrified store worker Awais Khan by demanding he hand over cash from the till before fleeing from the scene.
The incident happened in February 2011 and Leys could have got away with it – if his conscience had not got the better of him.
But earlier this year he called police to confess and claimed he was having “nightmares” about the impact the robbery must have had on his victim.
Yesterday, Leys appeared at Aberdeen Sheriff Court to be sentenced having previously admitted committing the assault and robbery.
The court previously heard Leys entered the store on his own at around 7.40pm on February 28, 2011 before pointing a knife towards Mr Khan and demanding cash, alcohol and cigarettes.
Fiscal depute Anne MacDonald said Mr Khan was “shocked and alarmed” and was unable to react as he was “frozen with fear”.
Miss MacDonald said Leys repeated his demand and told his victim “It would be better if you do it fast”.
The court heard another customer then entered the shop and Mr Khan opened the till and started putting money on the counter.
The court heard in total he stole around £400 and just over £36 of drink and cigarettes.
Miss Macdonald said that in January this year Leys called the 101 police number, and confessed because he felt “really bad” and was trying to “sort his life out”.
Sheriff William Summers jailed Leys, of Wood Street, Aberdeen, for 14 months.
