2015: CARJACKER ANDREW JONES JAILED FOR 14 YEARS AFTER ATTACKING 78-YEAR-OLD REGINALD STOCKING
A ROBBER who left a pensioner wheelchair-bound after stealing his car has been jailed for 14 years.Andrew Jones, from Oldbury, pounced on 78-year-old Reginald Stocking as he moved his car onto his driveway in Chapel Street, West Bromwich, in May this year.
The 34-year-old jumped behind the wheel and as Mr Stocking valiantly tried to wrestle back the controls he was dragged along by the Peugeot 207 and crushed against a wall.
He was left in a critical condition with serious head injuries.
Just hours later, Jones used the car as a getaway vehicle at a burglary in Tipton’s Groveland Road.
CCTV evidence showed Jones in Chapel Lane minutes before the carjacking, parking the Peugeot near his ex-partner’s home in Kendrick House, and him running into the block of flats with a stolen TV telling his former girlfriend "ask no questions and I will tell no lies".
Jones, of Dingle Street, was found guilty of the cowardly crime at Wolverhampton Crown Court last month and on Friday (December 4) was jailed for 14 years.
Detective Inspector Pete Rowe, from West Bromwich CID, said: "I’m pleased Jones has been put out of harm’s way for a considerable period of time.
Hopefully that will offer some comfort for Mr Stocking, his family and friends for all the pain he’s caused.
"Jones had no thought for a man he left lying critically ill in the road.
He was so callous in his actions that only hours after the robbery he committed a burglary, using the stolen car.
"He planned his crimes and lay in wait for the man and his wife to return home from an evening out.
He then used the car in a burglary and implicated his ex-partner by storing stolen goods at her flat.
"We issued several high profile appeals and officers investigating the crime painstakingly searched CCTV and followed up leads.
"Through hard work and help from the public, who were obviously outraged by this crime, we have successfully secured a lengthy prison sentence."
