Husband and wife traders were attacked by violent brothers when they tried to stop them from stealing.
Terry Tyler and Leonard Tyler walked into their local store and tried to use a ruse to steal items, including a bottle of vodka.
But when their plan failed and the husband and wife owners of the shop challenged them, they attacked them in shocking scenes that left them both hurt.
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Now the couple, who have more than 150 previous convictions between them, have been jailed for a total of more than ten years.
Newcastle Crown Court heard it was on the morning of July 27 last year that they entered the A&G newsagent’s in Lynemouth, Northumberland.
They asked for a bottle of vodka and cigarettes and Leonard put them in a carrier bag and headed for the exit while Terry pretended to make a genuine effort to pay for them with a card belonging to someone else which they knew it wasn’t working.
Leonard then took the vodka out of the bag and hid it in his sleeve.
When the shopkeeper went to retrieve the bag, he noticed that the vodka was missing.
The brothers then started an argument and their cries alerted the victim’s children in the apartment above, who saw what was happening on a monitor and told their mother, who went down to the shop.
She noticed Leonard had the vodka up his sleeve and alerted her husband, who tried to stop Leonard at the door.
Terry then grabbed the victim from behind with his arm around his chest then, while facing him, put both hands around his throat for a few seconds.
He was then kicked or pushed by Leonard and his wife was pushed and punched in the face by Leonard and she fell back into shelves.
The husband was dragged to the ground outside and punched him in the face.
Leonard also made threats to his property and his car in an effort to intimidate him into not turning himself in to the police.
He was left with a sore lip and neck pain while his wife suffered pain and a scrape.
Terry, who has 94 prior convictions and Leonard, who has 58 prior convictions, both admitted robbery. Terry also admitted criminal damage while in police custody, tearing up a police code of conduct and dumping food in his cell.
Terry, who breached a suspended sentence, was jailed for six years and three months while Leonard received four years. They have both received restraining orders banning them from West Market Street, Lynemouth, where the store is located.
Shaun Routledge, for Terry Tyler, said he had a difficult upbringing and “is more of a parasite than a danger to society”.
He added: “He wants to turn his life around. His partner had a baby girl yesterday and he woke up in jail and wants to take care of his family.”
Tony Cornberg, for Leonard Tyler, said: “He took responsibility and showed remorse.
“He had been out of jail for a fairly short time for something similar and was working as a roofer and doing quite well.
“He’s reckless and relapses when the going gets tough.”
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