Dairy owner beat armed robber in struggle
A 17-year-old would-be armed robber is in custody awaiting sentence after a brave dairy owner fought back and took his air rifle off him.
Alexander William Edward Cottrell’s mother told the Christchurch District Court of psychiatric issues her son faces and offered to have him at home with her in Windwhistle, inland Canterbury, while he was on bail.
But after the youth’s guilty plea today, Judge Robert Murfitt said it was evident he could not be trusted not to reoffend.
He remanded Cottrell in custody for his sentencing on September 17 but ordered a report on his suitability for home detention.
Probation told the court that Cottrell had not reported on his current supervision sentence since June 6, and his community work sentence since June 18.
Cottrell teamed up with a co-offender who did the driving for their raid on a Yaldhurst dairy on June 21. They decided they would use an unloaded air rifle to get cash and cigarettes and took white plastic bags to load up with the loot.
Cottrell went into the dairy at 6.35pm. He presented the air rifle at the dairy owner’s face and demanded cash and tobacco pouches.
While the rifle was only 15cm from his face, the dairy owner put the items on the counter, but then he pushed the muzzle of the rifle aside from his face.
He told police at the time that he then saw it was not a high-powered rifle and “took matters into his own hands”. The dairy owner won the wrestle for the rifle and Cottrell ran out of the dairy without his cash, tobacco and air rifle. He ran 500m to the waiting car and the pair drove off.
He pleaded guilty today to a charge of assault with intent to rob and defence counsel Tim Fournier asked for his release on bail pending sentence.
Judge Murfitt refused bail, telling Cottrell: “I am not satisfied that you can be trusted at this stage not to reoffend given your impulsivity and poor judgment.”
When he realised he was being remanded in custody, Cottrell threw a packet of cigarettes from the dock to a friend in the court’s public seats. Police checked the packet before the friend was allowed to have it.
Category: News
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