A 50-year-old man was jailed for three years this morning after admitting trying to rob Empire Groceries while armed with a knife.

Bernett Colin Simmons, of no fixed abode, pleaded guilty to charges of attempted robbery and possessing a 7in knife in a public place.

Magistrates’ Court heard that at around 1pm on Tuesday, Simmons entered the store in North Shore Road, Devonshire, wearing a black helmet with a full-face visor.

He then approached the store’s owner, who was standing at the cash register. Asked to remove his helmet, he instead produced a knife and ordered the owner to open the cash register.

The owner, however, pressed the panic button and backed away from the robber.

A customer in the store then confronted Simmons, striking him with grocery baskets until he fled empty-handed.

He was later arrested nearby with a 7in knife in his front pocket. A search of the area revealed a helmet and a jacket matching the description of those worn by the robber.

He initially denied the offence, claiming he only had the knife for self defence, but in a police interview the following day he admitted committing the robbery.

Appearing in court this morning, he pleaded guilty to both charges, saying that be believed someone put “molly” in his drink, adding: “It just sent me on a racehorse where I didn’t know where it was going.”

Magistrate Khamisi Tokunbo said that an immediate custodial sentence was required and, given the knife was used in a robbery, there was no reason not to sentence Simmons to the mandatory 3-year sentence for possessing a bladed article.

He further sentenced Simmons to 15 months for attempted robbery, ordering that the sentences run concurrently.

• It is The Royal Gazette’s policy not to allow comments on stories regarding criminal court cases. As we are legally liable for any slanderous or defamatory comments made on our website, this move is for our protection as well as that of our readers.