Man jailed after travel agents raid

A dangerous criminal who held up terrified staff at gun point in a Cannock travel agents before stealing £52,000 has been jailed for 12 years.

Max Ensor was found guilty of robbery, possession of a firearm and criminal property yesterday following the raid at Going Places in April 2006. The jury returned their verdict after a day and a half of deliberations, following a nine day trial at Stafford Crown Court.

During the case they heard how Ensor, aged 55, from Birmingham, and an accomplice subjected three female staff at the shop in Market Street to a terrifying ordeal.

The pair ordered two of them to lie on the floor while the other emptied the bureau de change safe of cash and travellers cheques.

They escaped in a Hyundai Coupe, stolen from a petrol station forecourt in the Birmingham area, which had cloned number plates from a car of the same make to avoid suspicion.

Ensor, of Collins House, Huntly Road, Edgbaston, was arrested in September 2006 and a number of articles were seized including the car and a bag, believed to have been used to carry a sawn-off shotgun during the robbery, in which firearms residue was discovered.

Detective Inspector Pete Wyatt, of Chase division CID, said: "Max Ensor is a dangerous criminal who has been removed from society thanks to the hard work of the police and forensic scientists and in particular Det con Martin Ottey, who has meticulously pursued this investigation.

"The staff at the premises should also be praised for their assistance in spite of their terrifying ordeal.

"It is an experience they will always remember but thankfully, they appear to have been able to put it behind them. Their evidence and that of other witnesses was crucial in achieving this result.

"The other offender is still outstanding and an investigation continues."

Judge Mark Eades, sentencing Ensor to concurrent 12-year terms for the robbery and firearms charges and a further two years concurrently for possession of criminal property, said he had subjected the staff to a terrifying ordeal and his crime had involved a great deal of planning, factors reflected in the severity of the sentence.