A man has been jailed for knife-point robbery in Hyson Green which started by asking for cigarettes.
Berham Qadir, of no fixed address, threatened a man with a knife in a car park and stole £5 from him.
The 31 year old was sentenced at Nottingham Crown Court on Wednesday (May 13) after pleading guilty to robbery and possession of heroin. He was jailed for three-and-a-half years.
The charges relate to an incident in Belper Road, Hyson Green, on February 20, where he walked up to a man and asked him for some cigarettes.
The victim declined and Qadir angrily pulled out a pen knife, pointing the blade at the victim and pressed it against his jacket.
He asked him "what have you got for me?" The victim held out a five pound note, which was snatched by Qadir before he ran off.
Officers were out on patrol the following day when the victim spoke to officers and told them he had seen Qadir again.
They then spotted Qadir, who had seen the police van and ran, but officers ran after him and arrested him. While he was being detained he was searched and they found him in possession of a wrap of heroin in his pocket.
Detective Constable Ruth Towle led the investigation. She said: “The victim could feel the blade against his stomach and he thought he was going to die. He must have been traumatised.
“We are pleased with today’s court result. Nottinghamshire Police treats knife crime and robbery extremely seriously.
"We have our own dedicated knife crime and robbery teams to help tackle these issues. They are part of the reason we are now putting more people before the courts and taking offenders off the streets for weapon-related offences.
"Having a dedicated robbery team also enables offences from different locations to be linked and investigated as a series.
“Thanks to the quick-thinking officers on patrol who worked closely with the victim, we were able to secure a quick arrest.
“I would like to thank him for supporting us throughout this investigation.”
