With his identity hidden, he pounced on a cash-in-transit security guard outside a Tesco Express store in Harrow, north London. He made off with about £250 in cash. In further robberies, customers were sent running for cover as he stormed into stores with two accomplices, once firing a weapon into the air in a betting shop. The gang of three was arrested after they targeted another security guard outside a branch of Currys in July. The group lay in wait in a blue Vauxhall Zafira with false number plates before Stephenson, armed with a semi-automatic pistol, grabbed the box containing £19,800.
They were held by police who swooped moments later as they tried to flee the scene in Staples Corner, north London. Detectives linked the crime to another four offences using evidence gathered from CCTV, mobile phones, witness statements and surveillance operations. Stephenson initially pleaded guilty to five charges against him. He later admitted a further 14 historic robberies across north London dating as far back as 1999. Detective chief inspector Harry Hennigan said: "Stephenson executed these crimes in a calculated and frightening manner with no regard for innocent members of the public.
"His measures were so extreme, he tried to deceive the police by concealing his identity by wearing a lifelike latex mask which completely altered his skin colour and appearance. Stephenson also fired a gun in front of terrified members of the public, who scrambled for cover during a betting shop robbery." Stephenson, of Westminster, central London, was handed the 14-year prison term at Wood Green Crown Court for 19 counts of robbery and five counts of possessing a firearm, officials said. He will serve half his sentence behind bars, minus the 310 days he has already spent in custody.
