A thug was left bloodied and bruised after brave passers-by tackled him to the floor as he tried to rob a shop at knifepoint.
Michael Wint held an eight-inch knife to a shop worker's neck and threatened to slit her throat in the terrifying incident in Erdington, Birmingham in March.
Wint, 46, was wearing a balaclava but the woman recognised him as a regular customer who had purchased alcohol from her earlier in the day, Birmingham Live reports.
Brave members of the public heard her terrified screams during the robbery, rushed to her aid and pushed Wint to the floor.
Wint had ordered the woman hand over cash from the till before pulling out the knife and holding it to her neck.
Man, 22, 'chopped off mum's head with hacksaw then led police on chase'
He threatened to slit her throat as she was stood behind the counter of the S&J shop.
Witnesses pushed Wint to the floor and managed to disarm him.
He was able to escape the shop, but witnesses pursued him down the road, tackled him and held him for police.
He was arrested when officers arrived at the scene around 4.30pm on March 16.
Unemployed Wint told West Midlands Police he tried to rob the store in a “moment of madness" due to his financial problems.
Wint was jailed at Birmingham Crown Court on Wednesday for four years and eight months.
He was sentenced for eight months concurrently for possession of a bladed article.
After the hearing, police released a photo showing Wint's injuries after being detained by members of the public.
PC Jeff Brooks, of the Force CID team, hailed the local residents.
He said: “This is a truly fantastic example of residents coming together to protect their local area and people.
“They ultimately helped to prevent a stabbing and I cannot commend the actions of these people enough."
