Doncaster robber jailed after swinging axe at man and punching 15-year-old boy

A man who attacked a teenage boy in his own home before breaking into a couple’s house and assaulting a man with an axe has been jailed.

Andrew Shaw, 35, of Parklands Close, smashed a window to break into a property in Dunscroft, near Doncaster, on 4 December.

Once inside, he demanded money and attacked a 15-year-old boy who was left with a black eye and forced to hide in a cupboard until his mother returned home.

She then chased Shaw out of the property, although he had stolen around £3,000 worth of items, including an iPhone and two pieces of jewellery.

A day later, Shaw broke into a couple’s home in Rossington armed with an axe. He and an accomplice, who was carrying a knife, entered the property, with Shaw swinging the axe at a man who suffered an injury to his arm.

Shaw demanded the victim hand over money and when he refused, he told the man wielding a knife to stab him. The pair then searched the house before the man managed to apprehend the accomplice and get the two men out of the property.

Outside the house, Shaw continued to make violent threats and smashed a kitchen window before fleeing in a silver VW Polo with some tobacco and cigarettes.

Police found the Polo after it crashed into a fence, with Shaw later found hiding in a nearby outbuilding.

After pleaded guilty to two counts of robbery and possession of a bladed article at an earlier hearing, he was jailed for 11 years and six months at Sheffield Crown Court on Wednesday.

PC Sam Fowler from South Yorkshire Police said: "Shaw’s crimes caused considerable distress and alarm to a couple and a young boy who should have been safe in their own homes.

"His despicable crimes were aggravated by him carrying a dangerous weapon which he used to inflict injuries on a man who acted valiantly to defend his partner and his home.

"We are pleased that Shaw has been jailed for a considerable length of time and we will continue to endeavour to protect our communities. Let this be a reminder that if you commit these offences, we will do all we can to ensure you go to prison."

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