South Shropshire bank robber fails to get sentence cut
A bank robber jailed for his role in a terrifying raid carried out near Ludlow has failed to get his prison sentence of six years and eight months cut at London's Appeal Court.
Peter Shaun Oates was one of a gang which escaped with more than £51,000 from the Leintwardine branch of HSBC in September 2010.
The 26-year-old, of Liverpool, was locked up by Hereford Crown Court after admitting robbery.
Yesterday, he challenged his sentence with his lawyers arguing it was too long for his crime.
But his appeal was dismissed by three of the country's most senior judges, who said the term was 'not excessive'.
The court heard four masked men burst into the bank past the guards as they were re-stocking the cashpoint machine at about 1.20am on September 3.
One of the guards fell to the ground after being hit with a brick or stone and was told to 'stay down or I will blow your head off' – although none of the robbers actually had a firearm.
Oates and another of the robbers, Steven George Sweeney, acted as drivers for the gang but did not actually enter the bank or use violence, the court heard.
The court heard Oates had 11 previous convictions for offences including burglary and possessing cannabis with intent to supply.
