Defiant Staffordshire shopkeeper stands up to 6ft 4in raider

Mrs Pushpa Chmibba, known as Pam, stood up to the 6ft 4in raiderobber, repeatedly refusing to hand over money. He eventually fled the convenience store in Rugeley empty-handed.

Jailing her attacker Adam Fitch for three-and-a-half years, the judge praised Mrs Chmibba's 'brave' act of defiance.

Today the mother-of-three said she reacted more out of fright. "I was paralysed with fear – I couldn't have opened the till even if I'd wanted to."

Her ordeal took place on April 6 when drug addict Fitch burst into Pam's News and Booze shop in Holyoake Road. Mrs Chmibba, aged 59, said: "I'd just opened up after lunch and was serving a 12-year-old regular customer who was buying sweets.

"All of a sudden this tall man with his face covered by a blue cloth and wearing sunglasses came in. He demanded money from the till. and when I said I hadn't got any, he pointed the knife at me. and kept coming closer when I said I hadn't got any money. He was shouting at me and banging the till.

"I kept pushing back as he brought the knife closer. The young lad in the shop was texting his mum, saying someone was going to stab Pam. Then I told the man there were CCTV cameras, and it was only then that hegave up and ran out. "

The plucky shopkeeper rang the police as a couple of passers-by gave chase. But she said: "I was so traumatised I couldn't speak. I just kept saying 'Pam's shop, knife man'. I was shaking. They had to tell me to calm down."

The mother-of-three said: "I've had this shop for 20 years and nothing like this has ever happened before.

"I always said if anything like this were to happen that I would put my life first but when it came to it my hands and feet wouldn't move with fear.

"After it happened I was frightened every time the shop door opened but I'm getting better now. I have to be strong."

Stafford Crown Court heard that after failing to get money in the shop raid, later the same day Fitch stole packs of razor blades from Morrisons supermarket.The 28-year-old, of no fixed address, admitted charges of attempted robbery and theft.

Judge Mark Eades told him: "This was planned - you had a hood up and the purpose was to get money to fund your drug habit. In the end you didn't go through with it, that brave shopkeeper refused to hand over the money and you left."

In a victim impact statement Mrs Chmibba said the incident had had a traumatic effect on her. She used to enjoy running the shop but believed she would never get over the attempted raid.

Police arrested Fitch three days later for the shoplifting. He said he had sold the razor blades to a drug dealer for cash and some Mkat but at the time denied being the would-be robber.

The court heard that Fitch had previously served a 64-month sentence for robbing a small shop using an imitation firearm and had been released from prison only a short time before the offences.

Mr Nayan Patel, defending, said: "He is a drug addict, it led him to commit minor offences of shoplifting and more serious offences."