Two men who committed armed robbery late last year have escaped jail terms after being given suspended 18 months prison sentences.

Meshack Ible, 21, of Glebe Road, Pembroke, and Elvis Richardson, of Stadium Heights Devonshire also 21, robbed Marvin Seaman, Richardson's former employer, as he drove up to one of his construction sites in Paget to pay his workers last November.

The court heard during yesterday's sentencing hearing that Ible carried a knife, put it to Mr. Seaman's throat and asked "where's the money?"

Mr. Seaman was cut on the wrist when he attempted to punch him. The two escaped on foot with the wages destined for Mr. Seaman's employees.

Police soon arrested the pair who fully co-operated, with Richardson handing over $3,000 and Ible giving back $800.

"I have not only lost money but also my faith and trust in people," Mr. Seaman,75, said in his victim impact statement read out in court.

Prosecutor Cindy Clarke asked the court to impose an immediate custodial sentence of between three to five years, saying the robbery was planned and there was a high risk of re-offending.

She added that Ible had shown no remorse.

Richardson's lawyer Kim White pointed out in mitigation that his client had co-operated fully with the Police, had apologised in writing to Mr. Seaman and returned his share of the proceeds.

In addition he said, his client was a first offender and his youth should also be taken into account.

The actual amount of money stolen was in dispute. Richardson maintained from the beginning that only $6,000 had been stolen and that was supported by Ible's statement to the Police but that Mr. Seaman had claimed that he lost $14,000.

"It's important because my client returned his half of the proceeds," Mr. White said. He then called Richardson's current employer Lloyd Raynor who testified that he was a good worker and would continue to employ him despite his crime.

Another character witness, a close family friend, said Richardson's actions were "out of character".

"This was a bumbling, inept, amateur attempt," Mr. White said. "They caught a bus to go to a robbery. He robbed his former employer in broad daylight. They took a clock with them, a household clock, because they didn't have a watch."

If sent to prison, he said, Richardson would learn "the difference between an amateur and a professional".

But six week's on remand in Westgate had provided a "short, sharp shock" that had already deterred him from re-offending.

Mr. White noted that a social inquiry report had recommended community based sentencing, adding that his client had admitted to smoking marijuana laced with cocaine for some three weeks prior to the offence and "he liked how it felt".

He also cited precedents to establish that, in the past hardened criminals had been given relatively light sentences for worse crimes.

Lawyer Victoria Pearman, who appeared for Ible, disputed some aspects of the probation report done on behalf of her client.

She said she had no idea why the report said that there was a risk of re-offending and that Ible did not have a history of violent behaviour.

"Taking the knife was to scare him to give him the money. It doesn't follow that he has a propensity to violence," she said.

"There is nothing on which we can say that Mr. Ible is a person of a violent nature."

She pointed out that he had expressed remorse when being questioned by the Police and had admitted to having a problem with alcohol, smoking marijuana and experimenting with cocaine.

Ms Pearman said the idea of robbing Mr. Seaman "started out as a joke and turned serious".

She said while many other more "callous" criminals had been given multiple chances, Ible "is crying out for one chance".

"Sometimes good people do bad things. And I would suggest that he is a good person."

Both men apologised to the court before sentence was passed.

Assistant Justice Simmons ordered Ible to pay back another $2,200 to Mr. Seaman and the pair are not to have any contact with each other, drug dealers or drug addicts for the two year term of their probation.

She also ordered them to attend drug rehabilitation programmes, abstain from alcohol and drugs and submit to drug testing twice a week and imposed a 9 p.m. to 6 a.m. curfew.

"It's all up to you," the judge told the pair. "This is your one break."