Added on 29 June 2018 at 14:49

There is 1 related update to this story

29 Jun Jail for armed robbers who targeted Hinton Charterhouse Post Office26 Jun Three men convicted of armed robbery at Hinton Charterhouse Post Office

Three men have been jailed over an armed robbery at Hinton Charterhouse Post Office.

The incident happened on Friday 23 September 2016, when three men entered the shop with their faces concealed and threatened the post master with a machete.

They stole a large amount of cash and made off in a Ford Ka which had been stolen two days earlier in a burglary at a house in Midsomer Norton on 21 September 2016. It was later found abandoned at Whitehouse Lane, near Frome.

Convicted of armed robbery

Officers arrested a first suspect in the early hours of Saturday 24 September, with more arrests on Wednesday 28 September and Friday 30 September. Police recovered a significant proportion of the stolen money.

Following a detailed investigation including extensive CCTV and other enquiries, all three men were charged with the robbery of Hinton Charterhouse Post Office.

Leroy Harding, 31, of Oldfield Park, Bath, and Luke Watts, 32, of Combe Down, Bath, admitted robbery when they appeared before Bristol Crown Court on Monday 25 June 2018.

The third suspect, Kristof Vanyai-White, 28, Midsomer Norton, also admitted the offence when he appeared in the same court on Tuesday 26 June 2018.

Today, Friday 29 June, all three were jailed by His Honour Judge Picton who described the robbery as 'serious', involving 'a degree of planning' including disguising themselves with a wig and balaclavas, using a stolen vehicle and planning an escape route.

Vanyai-White, who was armed with the machete, was jailed for eight and a half years, Harding for five years and four months and Watts for four years and nine months

DC John Shanahan praised four members of the public for making significant contributions to the success of the investigation:

a local resident who took down details of the make, model and registration of the getaway car, as well as the direction it went

a couple who saw the police activity as they drove through Hinton Charterhouse, and took the trouble to tell officers after spotting three men in a field near Frome, just in case it was connected

a taxi driver who took the defendants from Frome back to Bath. He took part in an identification procedure and the forensic examination of his vehicle linked two defendants to the offence

DC Shanahan said: "I feel this highlights the important role that the public have in preventing and detecting crime. Those people mentioned should be commended for their diligence and public spirit."

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