AN armed robber who searched the internet to find out the jail sentence for armed robbery the day after he targeted a Church Crookham shop quickly found out the answer.

Robert Sifile, 22, of no fixed address, and his partner in crime Thomas Jackson, 21, of Chaundlers Croft, Farnham, were sentenced to nine years each in prison for the terrifying attack.

The pair pleaded guilty to carrying out the armed robbery at the Nisa Local store in Linkway, Church Crookham, on November 28. They were sentenced at Winchester Crown Court on January 31.

The court heard that the two men went into the shop at 5.10pm, walked straight up to the till with their hoods up and threatened the cashier with a handgun.

Harrowing CCTV footage released by the police shows Sifile taking out the handgun from his pocket and holding it to the terrified victim’s head, while Jackson used a distinctive curve-bladed machete to hit him on the back several times.

While doing this the duo threatened the cashier, demanding he opened the till.

As a result of this frightening attack, the victim suffered a cut to the top of his head.

The prosecution told the court that Jackson managed to reach into the till and steal more than £560 in cash before running out when they failed to get the second till open.

Hampshire Police dispatched officers to the scene immediately, and the pair were quickly identified and arrested on November 30.

The court was told how the knife and the gun were found in the car that the pair were stopped in.

Winchester Crown Court also heard that officers made some interesting discoveries on Sifile’s mobile phone.

Examination of his phone showed that he searched “sentencing for armed robbery” the day after the Nisa Local raid.

He also made a video of himself holding the gun and wearing the same clothes he wore during the incident just six hours earlier.

At an earlier hearing, Sifile pleaded guilty to attempted grievous bodily harm, robbery, possession of an imitation firearm and possession of an offensive weapon.

Jackson pleaded guilty to robbery, possession of an imitation firearm and possession of an offensive weapon.

They were both jailed for a total of nine years each.

DC Matt Dennis said: “This was a fast-paced investigation into what was a frightening ordeal for the cashier. As you can see from the footage, the cashier was confronted with a terrifying sight as these two stormed towards him, both armed with weapons that could have caused potentially fatal injuries.

“Fortunately these dangerous men and their weapons are off our streets and they no longer need to carry out an internet search to find out how long you get in jail for an armed robbery.

“We hope our swift action on this case reassures those living and working in the area that we will take action against those who threaten our communities.”