Armed robber holds up pregnant cashier at York building society

AN ARMED robber threatened a pregnant bank cashier with a knife because he wanted to go back to prison as he didn't think he'd been punished enough for previous offences, a court heard.

Anthony Revill, 35, walked into a Halifax bank earlier this year brandishing a kitchen knife before snatching 1,400 from the pregnant member of staff.

The court heard he committed the crime because he wanted to go back to prison after feeling he hadn't been given a severe enough punishment for offences he committed in 1998.

Today he got his wish when a judge jailed him indefinitely.

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York Crown Court was told Revill had served four years in prison after sexually abusing mental patients at a care home.

Alan Mitcheson, prosecuting, said: '"t seems the motivation of the offence is his desire to be imprisoned further. He regarded a four-year sentence as insufficient imprisonment."

On April 28 this year, Revill, of Gateshead, Tyne and Wear, left a Newcastle hospital where he was receiving treatment, before getting a train to York with the intention of carrying out a robbery.

On arriving in the city he attended mass in a local church before making his way to the building society at lunchtime.

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Mr Mitcheson said: "He approached a woman standing at the help desk, produced the knife and told her to move.

"Having persuaded the first assistant to move out of the way he approached a cashier, who was pregnant at the time, and demanded cash from her.

"The sight of the man with a knife paralysed her with fear and she was unable to respond."

The woman eventually handed Revill the cash after a colleague persuaded her to act.

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Revill was followed out of the branch by a customer who kept police informed of his whereabouts and Revill was eventually arrested nearby.

In mitigation, the court was told Revill had said he had been hearing voices in his head telling him to harm a woman, and had immediately sought medical help and was put on medication.

The Recorder of York Judge Stephen Ashurst told Revill: "You brought terror to the staff and customers.

"I am told that you would be happy to receive a long custodial sentence; what I have to ensure is I'm not being manipulated by someone in the dock."

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