A thug who brandished a knife at a bank clerk in a robbery bid was jailed yesterday for four-and-a-half years.
David Brodie, 36, assaulted the woman at the Bank of Scotland in Rutherglen, South Lanarkshire, on April 26, 2021.
Brodie pretended to wish to withdraw money before revealing the blade from a sports bag.
He told the terrified worker: "Open your drawers...open the f****** bag or put the money in the bag."
Brodie fled the scene empty handed after he was shown there were no drawers at the desk.
Brodie pled guilty at the High Court in Glasgow to a single charge of assault and attempted robbery.
His previous convictions include jail time for domestic matters as well as three years for an assault to severe injury and permanent disfigurement.
Judge Lady Stacey said: "You must understand you pled guilty to a very serious crime and the court must take seriously that you went into the bank armed with a knife.
"You brandished it at the woman behind the counter.
"This has a lasting effect on people who remember what happened when they don't want to think about it.
"This was a bad thing to do and that's why the only appropriate sentence is imprisonment."
The court earlier heard that Brodie attended the bank and spoke to a member of staff about withdrawing £600 but he had no identification.
Brodie was referred to the woman's counter where he attended.
Prosecutor Alan Parfery said: "When asked to provide his account details, he produced a black handled kitchen knife from his bag and pointed it at [the clerk]."
Brodie went on to make the threats to open the drawers and for the money.
Mr Parfery added: "She informed him that there were no drawers in the desk and stepped away from it to let him see for himself.
"Upon realising he could not get any cash from the desk, he turned round and walked out putting the knife back into the bag."
Brodie was snared after a media campaign circulated his picture and he was reported.
He admitted when quizzed that he was responsible for the attempted robbery despite providing "no comment" to further questions.
Geoffrey Forbes, defending, told the court: "He apologises to [the woman] for his conduct towards her in the bank.
"It must have been an alarming thing for her to be confronted with."
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