Knifepoint robber is sentenced for taxi driver assault

A robber who threatened a taxi driver at knifepoint in Worcester has been sentenced at court to six years four months.

Paul Sheward, 38, of no fixed abode, previously pled guilty to robbery and two counts of possession of a bladed article in a public place at a hearing in March and was yesterday (Tuesday 14 October) sentenced at Worcester Crown Court.

Sheward and an accomplice attacked the taxi driver on Foxwell Street in Worcester at around 7pm on Friday 13 September 2024, wrongly believing he had drugs in his car.

After threatening him with a knife, the driver handed over around £100 cash and a mobile phone to Sheward who fled the scene on foot.

Officers quickly attended the scene where, among other evidence, they found some discarded shopping which led them to check CCTV at Tescos on London Road.

Footage from the store’s cameras showed a man matching the attacker’s description purchasing the shopping and led to him being positively identified by police.

Sheward was arrested on Monday 16 September 2024, where he was again found to have a knife on him, leading to a further charge for being in possession of a bladed article.

He was sentenced to six years and four months for the robbery and eight and ten months respectively for the two counts of possession of a bladed article in a public place, to run concurrently.

Detective Constable Cameron Chamberlain, of Worcester Reactive CID, said: “Violent offenders and bladed articles have no place in our communities, and this court result shows we will always seek to prosecute those committing such offences and bring them to justice.

“Sheward’s cowardly robbery on the taxi driver has rightly seen him given more than six years in prison and is another knife carrying criminal off our streets.”