A MAN who threatened to shoot a shop attendant during a two-day crime spree has been sentenced to one year in prison.
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Michael Douglas Blow, 25, earlier this year pleaded guilty in the County Court to three counts of robbery and one charge of possessing methamphetamine.
He fronted court on Monday where he was also sentenced to a two-year community corrections order.
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The court heard on the night of February 3 this year, Blow went to a Golden Square petrol station where a 19-year-old woman was working alone.
He entered the store wearing a hooded jumper worn backwards to cover his face, with eye holes cut out.
The worker tried to get behind the counter but Blow followed her, demanding all of the money from the till.
Blow grabbed about $200 in cash and some cigarettes, telling the victim, "You don't know what I have on me".
Blow dropped about $65 and some cigarettes while fleeing the store. The incident was captured on CCTV footage.
The court heard the next afternoon, Blow entered a bank in Rochester wearing the same hooded jumper backwards.
He threw a bag at a teller, demanding money. Blow then turned to another teller and demanded she open the safe, although she told Blow she did not have access.
The other teller placed $150 to $200 on the counter and told Blow that was all she had. Blow took the money and left the bank.
That evening, Blow - wearing the same disguise - walked up to an 18-year-old employee at a Rochester petrol station, who was checking fuel levels outside, and told him to empty the till.
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CCTV footage of the incident showed Blow pushing the victim towards the shop.
Once at the counter, Blow demanded the worker empty money into a bag or he would "shoot [him] in the head".
The victim opened the till, from which Blow took about $2000. The victim then ran and called triple zero.
While on the phone, the victim then chased Blow who dropped about $300 and a T-shirt with his name written on the inside.
The court heard police arrested Blow at his mother's house on February 5. He was found with $300 in cash and three small bags of methamphetamine.
Victim impact statements were tendered to the court during the plea hearing earlier this year.
The victims told the court they were experiencing anxiety and struggled to work as a result of the robberies.
Judge Mandy Fox told the court there was a level of planning in the offending, given Blow attempted to disguise himself. But she accepted the robberies were not sophisticated or well-planned.
Judge Fox also noted Blow showed no meaningful remorse, but was entitled to a discounted penalty as he pleaded guilty at an early stage.
Judge Fox said Blow had "significant mental illness" and was diagnosed with chronic schizophrenia in 2012.
She said a psychological report prepared for the court showed there was a direct link between Blow's mental illness and his drug use.
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Blow began sniffing petrol as a 13-year-old, before using cannabis. He began using ice as a 15-year-old.
Judge Fox said Blow grew up around serious family violence, and his father was killed in 2016.
The psychological report said a term of imprisonment would not deter Blow from further offending given his serious mental illness and drug issues.
Judge Fox said a corrections assessment noted Blow had "very guarded" prospects of rehabilitation and he was at a high risk of re-offending.
Judge Fox convicted and sentenced Blow to one year in jail, which would be followed by a two-year community corrections order.
The order would include supervision requirements, as well as mental health and drug rehabilitation programs.
Blow had spent 285 days in pre-sentence detention, which was reckoned as already served.
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