A BOY has been sentenced for his role in a plot to commit a terrifying Cumbrian town centre armed robbery.
Carlisle Crown Court has heard how a woman was robbed at knifepoint and stabbed while trying to withdraw cash in darkness from an ATM outside a bank in Market Square, Penrith, at around 6pm on January 16.
A 16-year-old male clad in dark clothing with his face covered carried out the shocking crime, before fleeing the scene.
But hours before his offence, a 14-year-old boy and another male, 19-year-old Paul Stuchfield, were heard hatching a chilling plot in a town McDonald’s. A female overhead the youths saying they “were going to cover their faces and rob a woman with a knife”.
These two young males denied a charge of conspiracy to rob but were found guilty, unanimously, by a jury following a trial. “To think that a knife has connected with my body and pierced my skin is terrifying,” the victim had said in an impact statement. “Now I go around my everyday life with scars from stab wounds on my legs and hips, bruising and aches and pains knowing that I have been victim of such an awful, life-altering incident.”
The younger boy, now aged 15, was sentenced at the crown court today (TUES). Judge James Adkin concluded he provided the knife for the robbery.
After considering a detailed report, the boy’s difficulties and that he needed structure to put his life back in track, Judge Adkin imposed a youth rehabilitation order. This comprises 18 months supervision, an activity requirement and night-time curfew.
The 16-year-old robber was handed 28 months detention in May. Stuchfield, of Kirkoswald, near Penrith, is due to be sentenced at the crown court next month.
