Bank raider made threat to shoot tot; COURT: Judge praises staff as he orders offender to be detained in psychiatric unit.

Byline: Paul Beard 

A MAN who threatened to shoot a young child in a pushchair if bank staff did not hand over cash quickly has been detained in a psychiatric unit.

A judge at Warwick Crown Court praised staff at the HSBC branch in Alcester for the way they dealt with the situation during the attempted robbery by 57-year-old Anthony Pulley.

Pulley, of Barnsley Hall Drive, Bromsgrove, was ordered to be detained at a psychiatric unit under the Mental Health Act after pleading guilty to attempted robbery.

Prosecutor Vicki Lofrese told the court that on May 12 there were two customers, one with a small child in a pushchair, in the HSBC branch in High Street, Alcester.

A man who "looked ill and appeared to be frail" approached the counter and said nothing, but put a folded piece of paper into the tray in front of cashier Christine Jones, which read: "Quickly hand the money over. I have a revolver in my pocket. I will shoot everyone in here. No alarms for five minutes."

Miss Lofrese said: "Mrs Jones was somewhat cynical and said, 'show me,' and activated the attack button as she began to take notes out of the till."

Believing she was stalling, Pulley gestured to the pushchair and threatened: "Hurry up, or I'll shoot the baby."

Watched by Pulley, Mrs Jones put pounds 5,000 in used notes into a bank bag. But before she handed it over, taxi-driver Neil Gawn, who had taken Pulley to the bank, came in to see where he was. Realising there was a problem, the driver exclaimed: "Oh Tony, what have you done? Come out now," and led Pulley outside into the street.

When police officers arrived, Pulley told them: "I've just done the bank."

Referring to a three-year sentence he had served for holding up a building society with a toy gun in 1978, Pulley remarked: "Last time I was in prison for this I said I'd never do it again."