A robber armed with a claw hammer who caused fear and distress in a shopping centre has been jailed.
Anthony Potts smashed a stallholder's till with the weapon, stole cash, demanded car keys from a shopper and struggled with a taxi driver during the early morning crime spree at The Galleries, in Washington.
A court heard one victim was working at a mobile phone stall around 9.30am on March 9 this year when he was suddenly aware of Potts. Neil Pallister, prosecuting, told Newcastle Crown Court : "The defendant swung a hammer onto the till, putting a hole in the top of it and smashing it onto the ground.
