Law graduate jailed over terrifying armed robberies

A law graduate has been sentenced to 15 years in prison for carrying out a string of terrifying armed robberies at supermarkets, petrol stations and a bank. 

Kudakwashe Chowa, 30, of High Street Erdington was sentenced yesterday (Monday 7 August 2023) at Birmingham Crown Court after he admitted 18 armed robberies at various locations across the West Midlands.

The court heard that Chowa threatened shop workers at knifepoint between February and October 2022.

His offending came to light after he left his DNA at the scene of a robbery at Lloyds Bank where he was armed with a BB gun and escaped with £3639.15 in cash.

He was arrested following an extensive investigation by the police who trawled through hours of CCTV to match Chowa to the various offences and locations.

Tejinder Sandhu of the CPS said: “Kudakwashe Chowa was a menace to society and had no regard for the safety of staff who were just going about their daily business. He used his educated background as a law graduate to plan and execute these robberies and attempted to get away with it by switching multiple mobile phones and destroying evidence. At yesterday’s sentencing hearing, the court heard of the devastating effects his crimes had on numerous victims who were left scarred by his actions. He has now rightly received a lengthy sentence which reflects the severity of his offending and should serve as an example to other criminals.”