Colin
Douglas
This article forms part of our
Rogues and Vagabonds
section.
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Colin
Paul Douglas has been convicted of 18 offences, including two armed
robberies, arson, carjacking and burglary.
Douglas, who
sparked a massive manhunt after going on the run in early March, was
yesterday found guilty of an armed robbery, committed just days
before he held up a Weymouth post office.
He will now face
sentence for a total of 18 offences, including the armed robbery of
the Abbotsbury Road Post Office, using a firearm with intent,
aggravated vehicle taking, three offences relating to the robbery of
a Portland taxi driver, two counts of dangerous driving and
possession of a firearm and ammunition.
Other offences
Douglas has admitted include theft from a pharmacy, burglary and
theft of a vehicle, while he will also be sentenced following
convictions for burglary and arson at a Dorchester paper factory.
Douglas, 26, had denied charges of robbing Derrick Thorner,
possessing a firearm to commit the offence and falsely imprisoning
Mr Thorner.
Douglas, of no fixed abode, was convicted of all
three offences following a three-day trial at Dorchester Crown
Court.
The jury heard Mr Thorner describe how he was parking
up his car at the end of his shift at around 1am on February 25 at
garages on Harbour View Road, Portland, when he was approached by a
masked gunman.
He said the man was holding a handgun two to
three inches from his face and demanded money before searching the
garage and taxi.
Mr Thorner eventually handed over a moneybag
containing £180 and other items before he was tied up with a bungee
rope that had been in the boot of the taxi.
The gunman then
locked the taxi driver in the garage and drove off in his vehicle.
Jurors had already been told how Douglas had used a rifle to rob
£28,000 from the Abbotsbury Road Post Office on March 2.
After nearly five hours of deliberations, the jury of six men and
six women returned unanimous guilty verdicts on all three charges
relating to Mr Thorner.
Douglas showed little emotion in the
dock as the verdicts were delivered. Following the conviction
prosecutor David Richards revealed Douglas had a total of 19
previous convictions for 73 offences, including burglary, robbery
and drug offences.
Judge Roger Jarvis also lifted a banning
order restricting the media from publishing details of other
offences Douglas had pleaded guilty to around the time of the two
armed robberies.
He will also now face sentence for a theft
at Boots pharmacy on Portland Road, Weymouth, between February 11
and February 15, a burglary at Clearmount Road in Weymouth on
February 19 and theft of a Toyota Hilux jeep on the Granby
Industrial Estate on February 22.
The order also covered
offences relating to the pursuit of Douglas on March 4 as he was
finally apprehended by police following a high speed chase. He had
pleaded guilty to dangerous driving, possessing a firearm – a
semi-automatic rifle - and possessing firearm ammunition. The media
was also barred from publishing details of a trial last month, where
Douglas was found guilty of committing a burglary and arson at the
Dorchester Waste Paper unit at the Casterbridge Industrial Estate in
Dorchester on February 20.
Douglas will now be sentenced for
a total of 18 offences on December 9, after the case was adjourned
for a pre-sentence report and a psychiatric report to be prepared.
Judge Jarvis told the defendant that the only issue to be
decided at the sentence hearing would be just how long a prison
sentence he is to serve.
He told Douglas: “As you know it’s
just a question of length.”
Any contributions will be
gratefully accepted
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