Belfast off licence robber told staff member ‘if you don’t find the cash I will stab you’

Two men who robbed at an off licence in east Belfast were sentenced in the city’s Crown Court today (Tuesday).

Martin Smyth, whose address was given as HMP Magillian and who brandished a knife during the September 2022 robbery, was handed a six-and-a-half year sentence.

Emmanuel Peter Patrick Quinn, from Broom Park in Dunmurry, had a sentence of five years and nine months imposed. The pair were sentenced by Judge Sandra Crawford who divided both terms equally between prison and licence.

Both Smyth, 36, and 43-year old Quinn admitted charges of conspiring together to rob the Winemark on the Rosetta Road in Belfast on September 4, 2022 and of robbing Russell’s Cellars on the Castlereagh Road of £2,000 and a quantity of cigarettes and tobacco on the same date.

The court heard that at around 7.40pm on the evening in question, CCTV captured an Audi parked outside the Winemark premises. The vehicle’s rear number plate was missing, two males were observed in the Audi and suspicions were roused due to the way the car was parked.

The two males - Quinn and Smyth - exited the vehicle wearing surgical gloves, but didn’t enter the off licence. They got back into the Audi and left the scene - and around 30 minutes later the same vehicle pulled up outside Russell’s Cellars on the Castlereagh Road.

Smyth was armed with a knife and after the duo entered the premises, he shouted ‘you are getting robbed, everyone out of the way’.

Both men then walked behind the counter and ordered the 19-year old female employee to open the till. In a statement she subsequently made, the employee said: “I was terrified for my life so I opened the till.”

Quinn and Smyth then emptied the till and also bagging cigarettes and tobacco. With her hands raised in the air, the employee was then ordered to open the safe in the office and was told by Smyth ‘if you don’t find the cash I will stab you’.

After stealing cash, cigarettes and tobacco, the pair left the store. Judge Crawford told them “the trauma which your actions inflicted on the till operator is all too clear from the CCTV footage”.

“They were visibly shaking as they searched for the panic button before crouching or slumping down to the floor. They required help from other staff members and another young female member of staff is seen crying in the aftermath.”

The Audi was driven a short distance from the scene before both men got out of this car and into a Citroen. Both vehicles were later located in west Belfast - the Audi was found in Andersonstown whilst the Citroen was discovered at a petrol station on the Milltown Road.

Both defendants were in the Citroen and were arrested by the PSNI. During Tuesday’s sentencing, Judge Crawford said that whilst most of the money stolen was returned to the business, this did not address the “trauma and distress” experienced by the staff.

Noting Smyth gave a ‘no comment’ interview after his arrest, Judge Smyth said he had brandished a knife and issued threats. She also revealed he had 199 previous convictions on his “extensive and relevant” criminal record.

He told a Probation Officer he had been on a ‘drug and alcohol-fuelled binge’ in the days leading up to the robbery. Quinn, the Judge said, also gave a largely ‘no comment’ interview to police but claimed he had bought a large quantity of cigarettes from an individual when asked about items found on his person when arrested.

He has a record consisting of 167 previous convictions, and also told Probation he had been on a drugs binge, voiced regret for his involvement in the robbery and expressed remorse regarding what the staff endured. Prior to passing sentence, the Judge said she had read and considered defence submissions made on behalf of both men.

Smyth’s submissions highlighted his long-standing history of substance abuse, traumas in his life and the steps he is now taking to address his issues whilst in custody.

Regarding Quinn, his barrister set out his family background which includes fathering seven children, his previous employment as a forklift driver and his issues with drugs which he is now trying to tackle. Saying the robbery was a joint enterprise, Judge Crawford said the custody threshold was passed and jailed both men.

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