A MASKED raider who is thought to have had a gun in his waistband when he tried to hold up a betting shop has been jailed.

Kieren Evers also left a sandwich shop worker terrified when he robbed her store as she was on the evening shift alone, Swindon Crown Court was told.

And the 23-year-old was also said to have had a ‘robbery kit’ which included a BB gun and a bandana which he used to cover his face.

Simon Goodman, prosecuting, said the victim of the first raid was in the Lydiard Fields branch of Subway shortly before 10pm on Friday, June 29, last year.

She was alone in the back room and came out to find a man behind the counter, which shocked her as she had not heard the door ‘beep’ as someone entered.

The intruder had a hoodie zipped over his face, both hands in his pockets and in one something was pointing at her, which she later thought may have been a gun.

Mr Goodman said: “He moved towards her swearing ‘Open the till’.

He reached for the £20 notes, then said ‘No, you take it out’.”

After snatching the money he fled the shop, stopping at the door to say ‘I am sorry if I scared you, got bills to pay but I hope you are okay’.

Forensic officers managed to find a trace of his blood at the scene after the victim noticed he had a cut finger.

As a result do the raid the worker did not return for her last few shifts before starting a new a job and was also left anxious about being alone.

A month later Evers went to Betfred in Moredon, going in just after 9pm with a bandana over his face, having loitered outside for a while to ensure it was empty.

Once inside he flashed what looked like the handle of a pistol in his waistband and shouted ‘This isn’t a joke, empty the tills and give me the money’.

While one worked started to comply another shouted at him to ‘f*** off’ and said he wouldn’t get anything and he left the store realising the police had been called.

Evers, of Holbein Square, Grange Park, pleaded guilty to robbery. He asked for the attempted robbery and a break-in at a fish and chip shop to be taken into consideration.

Judge Peter Crabtree OBE asked prosecutors why the more serious BetFred raid was only being taken into consideration, rather than charged as an offence.

The court heard he was serving a two-year five-month jail term as a three-strike burglar imposed last August.

Guy Wyatt, defending, said his client’s comments on leaving Subway at least showed he had some victim empathy.

He said he had got back on to heroin and crack cocaine before the offending and had run up huge debts to dealers which had to be settled.

Jailing him the judge imposed a two-and-a-half year term to be added to the current sentence he is serving.