'Terrifying' London bookmakers robber caught after giving real name to ticket inspector

8 June 2022, 06:55 | Updated: 8 June 2022, 08:40

A "terrifying" robber who raided bookmakers across south London was caught by police after being stopped by a train ticket inspector.

Brett Mullan stole more than £2,780 in his 20-day spree, using a collapsible walking stick to appear like a shotgun when he held it within a carrier bag.

The Met's Flying Squad linked him to armed robberies at bookmakers in Lee, Norwood, Sutton and Crayford between April 4 and April 24.

Officers realised Mullan, 51, was travelling to his robberies by train and sought out CCTV.

They found he had been stopped by a railway ticket inspector on his way to the second robbery, in Burnt Ash Road on April 13, when he gave his real name.

Police then gathered footage of the raids and found video of Mullan leaving and returning to his home in Gravesend.

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He was arrested by the Flying Squad on April 25 after leaving home and was charged.

Detectives found the walking stick and saw he has used it to feign holding a shotgun by checking CCTV.

He pleaded guilty to five counts of robbery and five counts of possession of an imitation firearm on Monday.

He will be back at Snaresbrook Crown Court for sentencing on August 1.

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Detective Constable Carl Stallabras, of the Flying Squad, said: "Mullan terrified members of the public and staff at the bookmakers who were going about their normal lives when he demanded cash and made threats of serious violence. Those people feared for their lives.

"But a simple mistake on his way to the second offence was all we needed to track him down, and from there the wealth of evidence we obtained left him no choice but to plead guilty."