Man who robbed and threatened to stab victim is jailed

A man who robbed and threatened to stab his victim in Blackburn has been jailed for four years.

The victim, a man in his late 50s from Blackburn, had been enjoying a night out in the town when he was approached by the defendant Saliou Diaw at 2,45am on November 7th, last year

Without warning Diaw dragged his victim into an alleyway, punched him to the floor and threatened to stab him if he didn’t hand over his valuables.

Despite the victim’s brave attempts to fight him off, Diaw managed to escape with his iPhone and wallet containing banks cards and around £80 cash.

The victim later contacted his bank who confirmed his cards had been used at petrol stations in King Street, Preston New Road and Accrington Road – all Blackburn.

CCTV enquiries at the petrol station on Accrington Road showed Diaw using the victim’s card to buy alcohol, sweets, deodorant, tobacco and scratchcards.

Diaw was arrested at 2pm on November and officers found in his pocket receipts for transactions at the petrol stations on Preston New Road and Accrington Road. The victim’s bank card was used in both transactions.

Diaw, 32, of no fixed address, appeared at Preston Crown Court today (February 15th) where he sentenced for robbery and fraud by false representation.

DC Vicky Heys, of East CID, said: “This was an appalling and completely unprovoked attack on a man who was simply trying to enjoy a night out with friends. Diaw’s actions have had a profound impact on the victim and I would like to praise him for the bravery he has shown throughout this case.

“Diaw is a man motivated by greed and he brazenly thought he could commit this crime and then get away with using the victim’s bank card at multiple locations just hours after the attack.

“Thanks to the quick actions and diligence of the officers who worked on this case, Diaw was identified and arrested less than 12 hours after the robbery took place. Due to the overwhelming amount of evidence gathered against him Diaw had little choice but to plead guilty to what he had done.”