Robbers jailed over claw hammer raid at Leeds pub

Trevor Dooley, 24, was jailed for eight years and Nicholas Walker, 22, for four years over the raid on the Abbey Inn, Pollard Lane, Bramley, in the early hours of November 26 last year.

The victim was dragged from his bed in his flat above the pub and was threatened with the weapons before being ordering to hand over cash from a safe.

He was then forced to sit in a chair while one of the men stood over him as the other went through the pub taking more cash.

The pair also took his mobile phone and bottles of spirits from behind the bar. They were caught after a Citroen Saxo they were driving was traced and linked to Walker, of Halifax Road, Bradford. Recorder Bernard Gatehill said: “This robbery was a very serious offence indeed - one of the worst of its kind.

“Force was threatened and weapons were used to terrify the manager of this public house.”

Dooley, of Broad Lane, Bramley, was also a part of a gang of burglars which carried out a series of ram raids at tyre premises in on June 20 2013.

Dooley and two other men used a van to smash their way into premises at Gordons Tyres, Castleford, and stole £4,000 worth of tyres. They also targeted firms in Ossett and Dewsbury. Det Insp John Dexter, of Leeds District CID, said: “This was clearly a terrifying experience for the victim to be awoken in the night by masked men and threatened with a hammer. Dooley and Walker were tracked down as a result of some good detective work assisted by information from the local community.

“Dooley is a prolific criminal with a long history of offending and we hope it will provide some reassurance to the victims and the wider community to see him brought to justice.”