A drug addict who robbed a 'truly terrified' woman in the street, stole a charity box and rode off with a children's bike was branded as 'scum of the earth'.
Dean Cleworth, 41, has been jailed for six years for his part in a sickening crime spree in Eccles.
Carl Phillips, 46, who also admitted being involved in the thefts of the charity box and the 'cherished' bike, which belonged to a 14-year-old boy and was stolen on his way to school, has also been jailed.
The owner of a cafe which the pair broke into and stole a charity box from branded those responsible as 'scum of the earth'.
A woman who alerted police after witnessing the pair trying to break into a bar was threatened with a crowbar and forced to withdraw money from a cash point, a court heard.
A judge warned the pair they could end up spending the rest of their lives in jail if they don't change their ways.
The crime spree began when the pair broke into the Sunny Side Up cafe on Liverpool Road, when £500 worth of property was stolen, including the charity box, and £800 of damage was caused.
The cafe owner said the crime came at a difficult time in November last year, as the pandemic hit and affected business.
"The crime has really upset me," she said. "I put everything into the business.
"It has been hard enough as it is with Covid."
Referencing the theft of the charity box, she added: "These people are scum of the earth, and shouldn't be able to get away with it."
Just two days later the pair were at it again, trying to force their way into the Station Bar in Eccles.
The bar owner was upstairs having a shower, at about 11pm, when he heard loud noises coming from the front door.
A woman who was outside on Church Street and saw what was going on called police, and also alerted the bar owner as she knew him.
Cleworth and Phillips, both of no fixed abode, failed to get into the bar.
They followed the woman who was withdrawing some cash from an ATM.
She felt intimidated as the pair, both on bikes, remained near her.
Cleworth then demanded to know who she'd been on the phone to, with the woman telling him she'd called her mum.
Cleworth said "Nah, give us your phone," the court heard.
He got off his bike and 'ran' at her, armed with a crowbar.
She believed it was a machete and was 'truly terrified', starting to shake and struggling to hold back the tears.
At first she was ordered to withdraw £500, but after pleading with him she took out £110.
Phillips, who was also present, had been telling Cleworth to 'leave her alone', prosecutor Hunter Gray said.
The woman said she was a 'nervous wreck' after her ordeal, and was 'haunted' by the thought that she could have been stabbed and killed.
Prosecutors accepted Cleworth had a crowbar, not a machete.
Just hours later, a 14-year-old schoolboy was cycling to school when he left his 'cherished' bike worth £1,000 outside a newsagents in Eccles.
Cleworth saw the bike, ran across the road and rode away with it.
Phillips was also present, on a bike.
Phillips was seen riding the stolen bike later that morning.
The boy's family posted an appeal on social media asking for anyone with information to come forward.
His brother tracked down Cleworth, who admitted to stealing the bike and selling it for £90.
Cleworth promised to get it back, but he never did.
The boy's mum said he took pride in the bike, and had spent his own money modifying and customising it.
Speaking of her son's attitude, his mum said he has lost interest because 'people can just take his stuff'.
Cleworth and Phillips both have 'appalling' criminal records, the court heard.
Their barrister Michael Johnson said they both had troubled childhoods and fell into drug taking and crime.
He said Cleworth's crimes were 'impulsive', and that he hadn't gone out to rob someone.
Judge Darren Preston said the pair believed they can 'just help yourself to other people's property'.
"If you carry on the way that you are, you are just going to spend all of your lives in custody," he said.
Cleworth pleaded guilty to attempted burglary, robbery, burglary, theft and possession of an offensive weapon.
Phillips pleaded guilty to burglary, attempted burglary and theft.
