A man who tried to rob a bookmakers in Glasgow while armed
with a cucumber in a sock has been jailed for 40 months. Gary Rough
brandished the vegetable, which was covered in a sock, at a female
worker at the Ladbrokes shop in Shettleston and demanded cash. Shortly
after she refused, the 28-year-old was pinned to the ground by an
off-duty police officer and arrested.
Rough was jailed at the High Court in Glasgow after admitting a charge
of
assault with intent to rob. The court heard that the bookmakers was busy
when Rough carried out the raid. Prosecutor Sheena Fraser said Rough
was armed with a "long cylindrical object
covered in a black sock" when he went to the counter for cash.
Worker Andrea McIntosh thought it may be a gun - but refused to give him
money. The court heard Det Sgt Drew White also happened to be in the
betting shop
and heard the commotion. CCTV showed Mr White knocking him to the ground
with one blow. The black sock was then taken off the "weapon" revealing
it to be a cucumber.
Rough initially told police it was "a joke" adding: "It was a dare... Am
I
getting the jail for this?"
He later added: "I think it was quite stupid - I am not a robber. It was a
laugh that went too far." Tony Graham, defending, said Rough was a £500-a-week plumber who "could give
no explanation" why he tried to rob the bookmakers. Mr Graham added: "He is a man who had no outstanding issues that would need
him to seek financial gain from a robbery.
While he was aware that it was a vegetable in a sock, he is also aware it
may have appeared different to others."
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