A FOILED robber who terrorised a shop worker at knifepoint has been jailed for four years.

Anthony Wain, 49, of Halton Lodge Avenue, Runcorn, pleaded guilty at Chester Crown Court to one count of attempted robbery and the possession of a bladed article in a public place.

Judge Roger Dutton sentenced Wain to four years in custody on Friday.

Wain entered the BP garage shop on Thomas Jones Way in Runcorn at around 8am on Tuesday, April 17.

He jammed the door with a plastic container to stop the doors being locked and then tried to jimmy open the till with a 12-inch kitchen knife before he was disturbed by a member of staff.

He then pointed the knife at the employee and demanded that the till was opened. The staff member refused and Wain fled the garage.

He was later caught by officers as he had left DNA evidence at the scene.

Detective Constable Phil Brown said: “Wain had clearly planned what he was going to do by jamming the doors to stop them being locked.

"His plan was scuppered when the member of staff working at the garage refused to open the till.

"He fled the scene empty handed hoping he wouldn’t be caught but thanks to the hard work of our forensic team he was identified, arrested and later charged with the offence.

“No one deserves to be threatened with a knife when they are at work and Wain is now serving a sentence behind bars and paying the price for his actions that day.”