THE ODDS COUPLE
Bookies raiders made getaway on tiny bikes
TWO masked robbers raided a bookies with a “gun” made of pipes in a bin bag.
And they then fled on push bikes that were too small for them.
Mark Taylor and Mark Haig stormed a Betfred branch with what looked like a shotgun in a bin liner.
They then pointed it at a female deputy manager before fleeing with £80 on undersized bikes.
Judge Jeremy Freedman told the pair: “Although the deputy manager was relatively stoical and didn’t believe it was a firearm that could be operated, it was nonetheless a terrifying and traumatic experience.”
The raid, in which the pair both wore balaclavas, took place at the betting shop in Gateshead, Tyne and Wear.
Taylor, 37, and Haig, 45, both of Gateshead, pleaded guilty at Newcastle Crown Court to robbery, possessing an imitation firearm and possessing an offensive weapon.
Taylor was jailed for three years and four months.
Haig, who also admitted two burglaries, was jailed for four years and eight months.