Man jailed after armed robberies at McDonald's and Miss Millies in Yate

A man has been sentenced to six years in prison after using a fake gun to carry out robberies in Yate.

Rudi Batten, 22, robbed Miss Millies during the evening of Sunday 7 February in possession of the firearm.

He threatened staff, who did not know the gun was fake, and stole cash from the till.

The next morning he carried out a similar offence at McDonald's just a few yards away, but no injuries were reported at either incident.

The 22-year-old was arrested by the police on the day of the McDonald's robbery. A search of his home address, in Station Road, was carried out and officers found the weapon, cash, clothes matching the offender’s description and food wrappers.

He pleaded guilty to two counts of robbery, two counts relating to possessing an imitation firearm and one count of having an article with a blade or point in a public place. He was jailed for a total of six years at Bristol Crown Court on Wednesday 28 April.

DC Katie Wright said: “Rudi Batten committed two robberies with no thought for the innocent people working in those premises.

“We welcome the custodial sentence handed to him and want to reassure the public that we will continue to deal with these types of offences in a robust way, and swiftly bringing offenders to justice.”

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