A man who threatened staff and stole cash from two shops in Northern Moor by pretending he had a gun, has been jailed for 10 years.

Nicholas Alphonso Hinds, aged 36, of Pepler Avenue, Northern Moor, robbed two shops on Sale Road, Northern Moor, by placing items in a carrier bag to give the appearance he had a gun.

In both robberies the staff, at Circle News and Nisa were forced to hand over cash, believing Hinds had a gun. The carrier bag was later found with items designed to simulate the appearance of a firearm.

Hinds was convicted of two counts of robbery after a trial at Manchester Crown Court and has been jailed for ten years.

He struck first at the Circle News store on Sale Road, Northern Moor, at about 9.30am on October 26 2012 and again on December 2 at the Nisa store.

Police Constable Chris Sutcliffe said: “Hinds’ actions show he is a determined and dangerous criminal and the streets are a far safer place now this man is behind bars.

“He had obviously pre-planned the two robberies and had gone to some lengths to simulate the appearance of a gun. This was clearly designed to cause as much fear as possible among his victims who genuinely believed they were being threatened at gunpoint.

“However, he could not escape justice and today is starting the first day of a long prison stretch. His arrest was testament to the quick response of the neighbour and response officers who attended after the Nisa robbery and I also hope it gives his victims some sense of justice at seeing him sent down for such a long time.”