Failed robber jailed after teenage victim fought him off with a bike seat – Merseyside

A violent man has been jailed after he tried robbing a 16-year-old boy by threatening him with a knife and even claiming his was going to set him on fire.

Stephen Smith repeatedly asked the teenager about his bicycle while the two waited for a train at Maghull North Railway Station, Merseyside, in March this year.

When the platform was deserted 24-year-old Smith pulled on a balaclava and held a knife to the victim’s throat and shouted “give us your bike”.

He pulled the bicycle away and tried leaving the scene but was chased down by the determined victim, who removed the bike’s detachable seat and beat Smith over the head with it.

He also pulled off the attacker’s balaclava.

The two struggled; exchanging several punches, with exasperated Smith yelling “just give me the bike” and adding “this is me dinner!”

He eventually shouted “that’s it I’m gonna light you on fire” and pulled a deodorant can and a lighter out of a bag, but was disturbed by a witness and fled the scene without the bike.

The victim suffered a black eye, pain across his upper body and face where he had been punched, a bite on his shoulder and a cut to his right finger.

Smith, of Maple Close in Sefton, Merseyside, was in prison for a separate offence when he was tracked down in May.

He said the CCTV of the attack was a “disgusting” watch and claimed never being at the station despite DNA evidence directly linking him to the scene.

He pleaded guilty to attempted robbery and possession of a bladed article and was sentenced to four years at Liverpool Crown Court on Friday 9 August.

Detective Constable Jonathan Raymond, of the British Transport Police, said: “This was understandably a very distressing incident for the victim.

“Smith is a very violent individual who thought nothing of attacking a boy and using extreme threats to get his way.

“The fact that he targeted a boy, who he wrongly assumed would be an easy target, just shows how cowardly he actually is.

“The judge commended the victim for his bravery during this incident and I would like to do the same.”