Preston thief who wore balaclava to rob man in his 60s is jailed

Nicholas Powis, 31, of Hawkins Close, Preston, was sentenced yesterday (Monday, August 23) at Preston Crown Court after pleading guilty to robbing a man in Emmanuel Street on July 10.

The victim, a man in his 60s, was walking close to the Emmanuel Club between 11.30pm and midnight when he was approached by a gang of men riding bikes.

The group pushed the man before stealing his money, mobile phone, bank cards and car keys.

Police were called and following a search of the area Powis was seen riding a bike and wearing a balaclava.

The court heard he was knocked off his bike by a police car during the course of his arrest and suffered a broken leg.

He was searched and the victim’s mobile phone, car keys and bank cards were found.

Powis was arrested and later charged with robbery. At the time of his arrest, he was on bail after being arrested earlier in July on suspicion of a spate of burglaries.

He pleaded guilty to robbery when he appeared at Preston Crown Court on crutches.

He was jailed for 10 months and will serve the sentence concurrently with a separate 36-week sentence imposed by Magistrates on July 15, after DNA evidence found him guilty of burglaries at Tulketh Chippy and Riverbank Veterinary Centre in June.

Powis has 26 previous convictions to his name, including many for burglary and theft.

You can read more about Powis' recent burglaries here, and a separate spate of burglaries which was was jailed for in 2018 here.

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