Gunman who robbed Eltham newsagent gets comeuppance through discarded glove

A man arrested after forensics linked his DNA on a pair of gloves to an armed robbery has been sentenced to six years and four months in prison.

Daniel Lee, 43, of no fixed address, pleaded guilty to robbery and possession of a firearm with intent to commit a schedule one offence at Woolwich Crown Court. He was jailed at the same court on Friday.

The court heard that at around 10.45am on Sunday, December 10 last year, Lee entered a newsagents in Shawbrooke Road in Eltham holding a firearm.

The defendant confronted a man working alone behind the desk and demanded money.

CCTV footage shows Lee pointing the gun at the victim’s head, as well as assaulting him with the butt of the gun several times, causing minor injuries to his head.

Lee was dressed distinctively in a black hooded jumper, balaclava, one black glove, one yellow glove, and a pair of black trainers with an orange/red band at the back.

The court also heard how Lee stole an iPhone from the counter, plus a Samsung phone from the victim’s inside jacket pocket, before leaving the scene on a bicycle, holding the shop’s cash drawer.

He was later seen on a footpath near the newsagents attempting to break open the cash drawer using the butt of the gun.

Lee discarded the pair of gloves on the footpath, which were later discovered by officers and found to contain both the DNA of the victim and the defendant.

He was identified by DNA and CCTV. Officers also found that he had worn the same clothes on previous interactions with police.

Lee was arrested in Eltham on December 28 and was later charged.

The judge also gave a Sheriff’s Awards for Bravery to the victim, as well as one to another member of the public who sought to intervene.

Detective Constable Seán Keogh, of the Met’s Flying Squad, said: “Criminality of this kind spreads terror through communities and can cause long-lasting harm and trauma, all for very little personal benefit.

“I hope this sentence reassures the community that the police will identify and remove these offenders from law abiding society, as well as demonstrating to those who would consider similar actions that they have little to gain, but a lot to lose.”

Pictured top: Still taken from CCTV footage capturing the dramatic moment the shopkeeper is menaced by Lee at gunpoint (Picture: The Met)