A ROBBER who threatened a shopkeeper with a wooden table leg while he stole cigarettes has been jailed for three years.

Hull Crown Court heard Wayne Anthony Kent, 30, of no fixed abode, entered a newsagent's on the corner of Anlaby Road and De La Pole Avenue, west Hull, at 8.55am on January 24.

Kent asked shop owner Thangarasa Wimalarasa for a packet of cigarettes, but refused to pay.

He was then seen loitering outside the shop pestering people for cigarettes, before he went back inside.

Prosecutor David Cammies told the court Kent produced a 2ft table leg and raised it towards the victim before jumping over the counter and trying to grab the till.

Mr Wimalarasa moved into the public area of the shop to get away from Kent and watched as he filled his pockets with packets of cigarettes before leaving the shop.

Police identified him from CCTV footage from the shop and his fingerprint was found on the till.

Officers later arrested him and discovered eight packets of cigarettes at his cousin's house.

In a personal victim statement read to the court, Mr Wimalarasa said: "I feel shaken up and scared that it could happen again.

"I'm an honest, hard-working person and I shouldn't have to live in fear of this happening again. The fact he had a weapon made it more terrifying."

Kent pleaded guilty to robbery at a previous hearing.

The court heard Kent has 58 previous offences on his record, dating back to 1991.

He had been given a 12-month conditional discharge at Hull Magistrates' Court in December last year for two offences of theft.

Sentencing him, the Honorary Recorder for Hull and the East Riding, Judge Michael Mettyear, said: "An offence of robbery of a shop is a very serious matter.

"People who run small shops are very vulnerable, they are providing a valuable service to the community.

"These offences are extremely frightening for the shopkeepers and I have no doubt it was frightening for the shopkeeper in this case to be confronted by a solid man carrying a large piece of wood."