Knife thug Thomas Lovell was locked up for four-and-a-half years after a judge watched a dramatic video of him raiding a shop.

The footage was so shocking that it even scared 20-year-old Lovell.

His barrister described the robbery as "a frightening scenario" at Hadfield Stores, Wharf Road, Stanford-le-Hope.

The video showed Lovell and two other youths burst into the store, screaming and struggling with the staff during which the owner was stabbed.

Lovell, of King Edward Road, Stanford, pleaded guilty to robbery and stealing £280 from store owner Ian Hitchcock.

Two 15-year-old youths are due to appear at court on a later date, prosecutor Christopher Hex told Basildon Crown Court.

. Since the raid the staff have been afraid of working alone and business has been affected, said Mr Hex. The money and knife have not been found.

He has previous convictions, including a hooded raid on a shop.

His barrister, Janet Johnson, said when Lovell viewed the CCTV he thought it showed him at his worst. He decided he needed help.

In sending Lovell to a young offenders' institution, Judge Marie Catterson said: "You carried out a sustained frenzied effort to rob that shop."

Published Tuesday, April 9, 2002