A MASKED robber who snatched a handbag from an elderly woman has been jailed for four and a half years.

Glenn Williams, 36, approached a 75-year-old woman on his bike as she walked across a car park in Handforth and snatched her bag from behind.

The handbag contained her mobile phone, a purse and a sentimental photograph.

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Williams, from Manchester, pleaded guilty to the robbery and was sentenced at Chester Crown Court on Wednesday, October 13.

Police received reports of the robbery on Wednesday, March 24, this year and carried out a six-month investigation to track him down.

The Wilmslow Beat team officer in the case painstakingly reviewed both local authority and private CCTV cameras.

Although the offence was not captured, footage showed a masked man on a bike in the area before and after the incident.

Believing him to be the offender, the officer eventually found a still image of him not wearing the mask some distance away from the scene.

The officer also discovered a still of him with the victim’s bag on his handlebars.

Another local beat officer subsequently identified Williams as the offender from the images.

Officers from Wilmslow then arrested Williams in Manchester and on searching his address, they found the bike that he had been riding during the robbery.

They also retrieved some of the clothes he was wearing that day in a bin.

Macclesfield Local Policing Unit Inspector Andy Baker said: “After a six-month investigation, the strength of the evidence that had been gathered against Williams led to him pleading guilty to the robbery.

“I hope this reassures residents that we will relentlessly pursue those who commit crime and put them before the courts.

"I also hope this goes as a warning to those intent on committing crime that Cheshire officers are dedicated to their roles in protecting the public and are determined to stop you in your tracks.”