An axe-wielding masked man who tried to rob a shop was foiled when customers chased him away with a barrage of groceries.
Jay Jamieson hadn’t counted on the bravery of two shoppers when he tried to raid the Premier Store in Peterhead.
The 19-year-old was brandishing an axe when he burst into the Berryden Road shop and demanded the till be opened.
But Aberdeen Sheriff Court was told that customers turned on the would-be robber, chasing him from the store by flinging juice and other food items at him.
It also emerged that Jamieson was handed a custodial sentence in September for a near-identical offence at a shop in Aberdeen.
On that occasion, Jamieson brandished an axe and threatened to “chop” the shopkeeper before fleeing with just over £300.
Appearing in the dock over the new matter, Jamieson, of Glenbervie Road, Torry, admitted a charge of assault and attempted robbery.
Fiscal depute Ruaridh McAlister said that at around 3.20pm on June 16 the Premier Store shopkeeper was standing at the fridge area when he heard a voice say “open the till, open the till”.
‘I hope he can make something of himself when he’s released’
He turned to see Jamieson, who was wearing a black cap and had a white snood pulled up over his face so only his eyes could be seen.
The shopkeeper, along with two customers, could see Jamieson was in possession of an axe up to a metre in length and with a large silver blade of around 12 inches.
Mr McAlister said: “He brandished it towards them whilst continually demanding that the female shopper open the till.
“The male shopper grabbed a bottle of juice from a shelf and threw it at the accused
in an attempt to get him out of the shop.
“The female also threw items from the shelves at the accused.
“The accused ran to the opposite corner of the store, and he was followed by the
male who continued to throw items at him, causing him to run from the store.
“This was fully captured on CCTV at the shop, which was later provided to the police.”
Jamieson was later identified from CCTV footage from another store he’d visited earlier that day.
‘This is pretty much a carbon copy’
The shopkeeper, in his police statement, advised he suffers from stress-induced seizures and was so scared by the incident that he felt he was going to have one.
Defence agent Chris Maitland said: “He has accepted full responsibility and shows genuine remorse.
“Obviously this is an extremely serious incident. Thankfully no physical harm was done but significant fear will have been caused.
“He apologised unreservedly for his actions.
“He’s still young. I hope that he is not a lost cause. I hope he can make something of himself when he’s released from custody.”
Sheriff Graham Buchanan said: “This is pretty much a carbon copy of the matter that led to that 12-month sentence.
“I warn you, you’re being dealt with for these matters less seriously because of your young age.
“But as you grow up and mature it will be vitally important that you stop behaving like this, because if you carry on offending in this way you’re likely to be spending a significant time in custody.”
The sheriff imposed a 10-month detention order to be served consecutively after the expiry of the 12-month sentence from his last axe robbery.
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