Man jailed for robbery

A man who robbed a building society in Leicester just days before starting his training course to become a teacher has been jailed for five years.

Leon Baxter, 25, was part of a three-man gang which targeted the Alliance and Leicester on Evington Road on 9 August last year.

After driving up from London, they burst in with Baxter and another man climbing over the security screen and taking cash from drawers.

Leicester Crown Court was told the five members of the public and various workers who were in the bank were left fearing for their safety.

Fingerprint evidence

Some believed the men, who were holding their hands in their pockets, were armed - although no weapon was seen during the raid.

After the gang escaped with nearly £4,000, Baxter, of Camberwell in South London, was tracked down through his fingerprints.

When questioned by detectives he admitted his own involvement but also falsely claimed that another man, a former school friend, was part of the gang.

Judge Michael Stokes told Baxter, who admitted robbery and attempting to pervert the course of justice, that he had taken part in a planned raid.

James House, defending, said Baxter had been due to start a teaching course but took part in the robbery after being "led up the garden path".