Below are some of the more serious cases dealt with at Sheffield Crown Court this year involving defendants who used a range of weapons including knives, a shotgun, imitation firearms, a hammer and even a bamboo cane.
In many instances, the victims were so scared they feared they were going to be seriously hurt or even killed and some have been left traumatised.
Offenders have used weapons in armed robberies or to simply threaten individuals and in one case a defendant shot a man in the leg after they had fallen out.
One knife-wielding defendant threatened a man who was sitting outside a Co-op store as shocked people looked on.
However, judges have punished these offenders appropriately with custodial sentences of varying lengths.
1. Gareth Gratton
Pictured is Gareth Gratton who has been jailed for four-years and two-months after threatening and warning at students at a loud party to shut up. Sheffield Crown Court heard in August how Gratton, aged 34 at the time of sentencing, of Mawfa Avenue, Norton, Sheffield, pointed the firearm at students and waved it around at the party at a property on Shoreham Street, Sheffield. The defendant, who has previous convictions, pleaded guilty to possessing an imitation firearm with intent to cause fear or violence after the incident on July 12. Photo: South Yorkshire Police
2. Ben Wright
Pictured is Ben Wright, aged 23 when sentenced, of Rodman Street, Woodhouse, Sheffield, who pleaded guilty to robbery and possessing a knife in a public place from December 13 and he also admitted two burglaries from December 15. Wright was sentenced at Sheffield Crown Court in January to eight years of custody after he raided the Ironbridge Convenience Store, on Retford Road, Sheffield, with a knife. Photo: South Yorkshire Police
3. Wayne Robinson
Pictured is Wayne Robinson who, according to a Sheffield Crown Court hearing, used a knife during a robbery at HR News, on Duke Street, Sheffield, and during a second raid at the same shop he used an imitation firearm with an accomplice. Robinson, aged 35, of St John’s Road, Sheffield, admitted committing two counts of robbery and possessing a knife and an imitation firearm. The defendant, who has previous convictions, was sentenced to 12 years of custody in January after the raids in November and December, 2018. Photo: South Yorkshire Police
4. Joshua Lawrenson
Pictured is Joshua Lawrenson, aged 22 at the time of sentencing, of Richmond Park Rise, Sheffield, and who admitted one count of robbery and possessing an imitation firearm following a raid with accomplice Wayne Robinson at HR News, on Duke Street, Sheffield, in December, 2018. Lawrenson, who has a previous conviction for possessing an offensive weapon, was sentenced to three years of custody in January. Robinson, aged 35, of St John’s Road, Sheffield, used a knife during a previous raid at HR News in November and during the second raid at the same shop he used an imitation firearm with Lawrenson. Robinson was jailed for 12 years. Photo: South Yorkshire Police