Lowlife thug who punched woman, stole from priest and held up shop staff with knife caught and jailed after being knocked out by have-a-go hero

A LOWLIFE thug responsible for a spree of vile crimes has finally been stopped and jailed – after a have-a-go hero knocked him out.

Kyle Copson, 30, punched a woman, stole from a priest and robbed two shops at knifepoint before he was beaten up and put behind bars.

Brandishing a blade on December 4 last year, he terrified staff and robbed a shop before stealing from another store two days later.

During the second robbery he knocked out a female worker as he fled, before stealing a Ford Fiesta to make his getaway on Acorn Street, Coventry.

Copson’s luck ran out, however, when he snuck into the home of two Romanian brothers, on Sandy Lane, Radford, and stole their TV, ending in a chase and beating for the criminal.

Clocking the crime, one of the siblings sprinted after him.

As Copson reached for his knife, the man punched him to the floor, pinned him down and waited for police to arrive at the scene.

In his mugshot, the petty criminal’s face has turned black and blue from the attack.

His right eye is badly swollen from the blow and streaks of blood can be seen running down his cheek from a cut above his eye.

When he was searched, cops found the keys to a VW Touran, stolen from a priest two days earlier, which he then used to rob a woman.

The thug had no fixed address and admitted aggravated burglary, robbery and theft and was given 12 years in jail at Leamington Crown Court on Monday.

Investigating officer, Detective Constable Sharon Owen, said: “The brothers did a great job in disarming Copson and keeping him pinned down until our officers arrived to take over; they acted in self-defence believing he was about to strike out with a knife.

“The law states that anyone can use reasonable force to protect themselves or others as long as they act in a way they honestly and instinctively believe was necessary in the heat of the moment.

“We will always support members of the public in situations like this and I congratulate the brothers for helping us get a dangerous, prolific criminal off our streets.

“The shop robberies were particularly nasty. He used violence against staff for no reason at all, people who were not standing in his way.

“I am pleased for all the victims; this is a strong sentence and highlights that anyone prepared to use serious violence on members of the public can expect to be put behind bars for a long time.

“Copson wasn’t just stealing money or cigarettes or alcohol, he was also stealing people’s right to feel safe, and that’s something we are all entitled to feel.

“Copson is a prolific offender with more than 40 acquisitive crime convictions to his name. Clearly he has time in jail to ditch his drug habit and hopefully turn over a new leaf when he is eventually released.”

The court heard details of Copson’s crimes, including an instance where he punched a female worker in the back of the head, leaving her unconscious, before making off with cash from a shop.

On a separate occasion he mugged a woman at a cashpoint, stealing £120 at Asda in London Road. Coventry on December 7.

Detectives found his fingerprints on a pack of cigarettes he dropped as he legged it from one shop.

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