A man who was laughed out of an Edinburgh convenience store after attempting an armed robbery has been jailed for three years following a string of knife-point robberies targeting local businesses.
Finlay Crawshaw, 21, was sentenced at Edinburgh Sheriff Court after pleading guilty to three charges of assault and robbery committed in November last year.
One of the incidents took place at the News Plus store on Gorgie Road at around 10.30pm on 27 November, when Crawshaw entered the shop brandishing a large kitchen knife and demanded money from two members of staff.
Instead of handing over cash, the shopkeepers laughed and told him there was no money in the till. CCTV footage showed Crawshaw asking, "You've got no money?" before leaving the premises empty-handed.
Around 15 minutes later, Crawshaw entered a nearby takeaway, where he threatened two employees with the same knife and stole an undisclosed amount of cash.
The court also heard that on 9 November, Crawshaw carried out another armed robbery at the Slateford Express convenience store. Wearing a face covering and armed with a knife, he demanded cash and cigarettes before reaching over the counter to take money and tobacco products. The shop assistant activated the panic alarm, prompting the robber to flee.
Following the November 27 incidents, firearms officers were deployed in an effort to trace the suspect. Police later executed searches at two Edinburgh properties, recovering the large kitchen knife used in the robberies before arresting Crawshaw several days later.
In addition to a three-year prison sentence, Sheriff Kenneth Campbell KC imposed a 12-month supervised release order, under which Crawshaw will remain under supervision after his release.