Armed gang of masked men burst into homes waking terrified couples, judge hears

The three raiders, wearing balaclavas and wielding a two foot long iron bar, smashed their way into one property with such force that the front door was ripped from its hinges, Wolverhampton Crown Court was told.

They targeted two flats in the same multi occupation house in Flaxhall Street, Walsall after getting in through a ground floor window, it was said.

The gang smashed their way into the first flat around 3am on December 12 and demanded 'where's the weed?' said Mr Daniel White, prosecuting.

They failed to find what they wanted and left after stealing a door key and trying to snatch a mobile phone from a startled occupant, the court heard.

The second flat had the front door forced off its hinges by the crooks who yelled 'where's the drugs?' said the prosecutor.

But they were forced to flee moments later as police raced to the scene after being alerted by a neighbour who had seen the gang acting suspiciously earlier, continued Mr White.

They fled through the rear of the property as the officers arrived at the front but a police dog soon traced one of them - Adil Shah - to his hiding place among undergrowth, the court was told.

The 24-year-old was in possession of the stolen door key from the flats and on bail after being caught driving dangerously along Willenhall Road, Portobello less than two months earlier on October 24.

On that occasion he sped away at more than twice the 30mph speed limit in a VW Golf and drove through two red traffic lights in a bid to escape an unmarked police car before stopping. He was also on licence from jail after being freed from a four year sentence for supplying drugs and money laundering, it was said.

Mr Richard Gibbs, defending, said of Shah's involvement in the raids: "He was fuelled by an overwhelming desire for cannabis and is deeply ashamed of what he did."

The defendant from Brock Road, Portobello pleaded guilty to two attempted robberies and dangerous driving . He was jailed for a total of six years by Judge Andrew Lockhart QC who told him: "While both on bail and on licence you went out on a planned robbery in Walsall that amounted to an invasion of two homes at a time when the occupants were in their beds and had a perfect entitlement to feel safe."