Dunstable teenager pleads guilty to attempted knifepoint robbery

A teenager from Dunstable has been sentenced to five years in a Young Offenders Institute after he pleaded guilty to attempting to rob a shop in Dunstable.
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Pierre Deans, 18, of Fossett Grove, was arrested after he was recognised by a police officer in a CCTV still circulated after a knife robbery in Mayfield Road, Dunstable in March this year.

On the day Deans entered a shop wearing a face mask. When he was asked to take it off by a staff member, he took out a large knife and threatened them with it.

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He demanded money from the shop till and attempted to stab the shop keeper numerous times. Deans eventually gave up and left the shop.

Pierre DeansPierre Deans
Pierre Deans

When committing this attempted robbery Deans was already awaiting sentencing for a different robbery in the Isleworth area of London.

He had been seen visiting a probation officer in the same clothes he was wearing at the time of the offence.

On Monday, July 1, Deans received a sentence of two years and nine months for attempting to cause actual bodily harm, and two years three months for his previous robbery in Isleworth, to run consecutively.

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He received a further two year and three month sentence for attempted robbery, which will run concurrently.

The CCTV still he was identified fromThe CCTV still he was identified from
The CCTV still he was identified from

Deans was also ordered to pay a £170 victim surcharge.

Detective Constable Oliver Fitton, who investigated, said: “Deans admitted his actions on the day and admitted he wanted to use the knife to hurt the victim. This is an extremely scary admission from a person this young.

“We hope this serves as a warning to all the young people out there carrying knives about the kind of consequences that can await them.

“When Deans’s peers are stepping into adulthood, he will be spending a long five years behind bars.

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“Hopefully he will take this time to think about his actions and turn his life around.”

Bedfordshire Police is dedicated to tackling knife crime in the county.

If someone you know is carrying a knife, encourage them to dispose of it in one of the force’s knife disposal bins.