A man who threatened shop staff with a knife before stealing almost £900 in cash has been sentenced to four years’ imprisonment.

Marcus Sherriff, of Burch Road, Northfleet, jumped over the shop counter brandishing the weapon and demanded cash from the till before fleeing with the money.

The 20-year-old pleaded guilty to the charges of robbery and being in possession of a knife and was sentenced at Woolwich Crown Court on Monday January 20.

The court heard how Sherriff had entered a shop in London Road with his hood up and a scarf across his face at around 2.15pm on Saturday November 9 last year.

He approached the tills with a knife in his hand and jumped over the counter where a member of staff was standing, before demanding cash.

When the shop assistant backed away from him he grabbed her arm and forced her to open the till – then stole almost £900 from the till drawer, jumped back over the counter and left the store.

Sherriff was later identified through CCTV footage, arrested and the knife was later recovered from his home address.

Officer in charge of the case, DC Martin Taylor of North Kent CID said: "Sherriff committed a terrifying robbery leaving shop staff petrified and fearing for their lives. Thankfully we were quickly able to identify him, bring him to justice and put a stop to his criminal activity."

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