Man who tried to flee police by jumping in River Avon jailed after string of robberies in Wiltshire
He appeared in court on Wednesday (3rd November)
A man has been jailed for 15 months after a string of burglaries and thefts across shops in Wiltshire.
Tomas Lloyd, 30, of New Street, Andover attended Aldi and co op on London Road in Salisbury on August 8th 2020.
On both occasions he paid for low value items at the till and when the cashier opened the drawer, Lloyd snatched cash from the till and fled the scene.
On one of these occasions, the cashier sustained an injury to her arm as she attempted to stop him.
On August 20, 2020, Lloyd and an accomplice attended Lidl in Warminster and again stole cash from the till. They then took a taxi to Trowbridge where they committed an identical offence in McColls, Castle Place.
Next they took a taxi to Melksham and went to Iceland. Lloyd again went to the till to buy two small items and as he handed over the cash to pay, he pushed the cashier to the chest with force causing an injury, before making off with cash from the till.
The robbery was reported to police and officers attended the scene – they spotted Lloyd in the car park.
He ran from officers and in an attempt to flee, he dived into the River Avon.
He eventually swam to shore and was arrested.
Det Con Anthony Swift said:
“Lloyd is a prolific offender who has used the same criminal method to cause considerable loss to the retail sector as well as anxiety and upset to his victims.
“I would like to commend the actions of the shop workers who did all they could to prevent Lloyd, and unfortunately in the process sustained injuries.
“I am pleased that Lloyd has been sentenced for these crimes – he is also serving a custodial sentence for committing identical crimes in Hampshire.”