Hartlepool drug addict saw 83-year-old woman he robbed as 'easy prey'

Matthew Muir, 50, shouted at the vulnerable 83-year-old ‘I want your purse’ and pointed a paper knife at her during the frightening incident in Hartlepool.

He grabbed £16 in coin bags from a chair and ran off.

Muir, who was said to be ‘in the grip’ of a heroin addiction at the time was jailed for five years and four months at Teesside Crown Court after he pleaded guilty to the robbery.

The judge said Muir saw the victim, who is infirm, as “easy prey”.

Prosecutor Martin Towers said she thought Muir, who she referred to as a window cleaner, had come to repay £40 she had given him a couple of days earlier on April 18.

But he started ‘shouting and bawling’ at her.

In an account to police the victim stated: "He picked up a paper knife and pointed it at me shouting ‘I want your money now’.

"I pointed my walking stick at him. He grabbed it off me then sat down.

"I said ‘just go’.”

Muir, of York Road, Hartlepool, spotted the coins, grabbed them and fled but was arrested nearby soon afterwards.

He told police he had a £60 a day heroin and cocaine addiction and apologised for what he had done.

Stewart Haywood, defending, said in mitigation, Muir became addicted to heroin after his parents died within six months of each other.

"He, quite simply, couldn’t cope with these two events in such a short space of time,” said Mr Haywood.

"He was immediately remorseful for his actions and through me again today expresses his sincere apologies to the victim.”

The Recorder of Middlesbrough Judge Paul Watson said it was an ‘absolutely deplorable’ crime adding: "For you she was easy prey.”

Police welcomed the sentence. DC Holly Angus from Hartlepool CID said: “Anyone with an elderly relative will appreciate how distressing this incident must have been for the victim and her family.

"We are committed to protecting vulnerable people in our communities.

“Anyone concerned about unwanted callers or exploitation of a vulnerable person should visit our website for crime prevention advice and information.”

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