POLICE have welcomed the jail sentence for a Kingswinford robber who ran over a young woman after taking her car.

Richard Halford, who car-jacked a £15,000 Ford Mondeo from a woman in lieu of a £30 grocery debt, has been jailed for almost five years.

The 20-year-old admitted one count of robbery and on August 18 at Wolverhampton Crown Court was jailed for four years and 10 months.

West Midlands Police Detective Constable Shelley Punshon said: “The woman was badly shaken after the robbery…it came completely out of the blue.

“She had picked up Halford and a friend and handed over £120 towards an outstanding £150 shopping bill – but the relatively small debt provoked an inexplicably violent response from Halford.

“He dragged her from the car shouting “do you think you can mess my mate about” and was lucky not to be more seriously hurt when the car clipped her during the getaway.

“We had officers on the scene very quickly and picked up Halford near to where the Mondeo had crashed. He was very quick to admit the robbery and now has a long jail sentence to think about the stupidity of his actions.”