Two men from Wigan jailed after choking their victims while robbing them
One of the teens had changed his occupation on Facebook to "crime at HMP Forest Bank Prison"
Two men from Wigan have been jailed after trying to buy alcohol with money they’d stolen by choking their victims.
19 year olds Callum Hugill and Lewis Nash have both been jailed for 3 years and 4 months.
Nash was also sentenced for an additional 5 years and 4 months for a separate assault .
At 9pm on Monday 15 January 2018, they went into an Esso Garage on Woodhouse Lane.
The cashier was attacked from behind by Nash, who put him in a choke hold and dragged him to the floor.
As the cashier was losing consciousness, Nash and Hugill demanded access to the till area and kicked him repeatedly, before fleeing with £100, cigarettes, spirits and a phone worth £800.
A short time later, a man was on Frog Lane in Wigan when he was approached by Nash who grabbed him in a choke hold, while Hugill took his cards and phone.
Thirty minutes after the first robbery, the duo were refused service when they tried to buy alcohol at a shop on Gidlow Lane and asked another customer to get it, who also refused.
Nash and Hugill then told the customer they’d “just done an armed robbery” and pulled out the stolen money and phone, which they smashed on the floor, shouting “I’ve just took it from someone.”
The man called the police who quickly arrived and detained the men in a flurry of notes, which flew out as officers tried to arrest Nash.
Both Hugill and Nash were later charged with the robbery.
Hugill was released on bail and on Facebook he updated his occupation to ‘crime at HMP Forest Bank Prison’, boasting about the fact he’d been released.
Detective Sergeant Philip Housley of GMP’s Wigan borough, said: “This pair showed a complete disregard for the law, violently choking innocent people, just to take a small amount of money.
“The way they boasted about the robberies they’d carried out and threw the stolen items on the floor, despite leaving two people injured, is something they should feel deeply ashamed about.
“I’d like to commend the customer who called the police for his quick thinking, without this, the pair may have gone on to terrorise more people in their malicious streak of robberies.
“Today’s result shows that we will always endeavour to bring criminals to justice in the end.”