A NOTORIOUS teenage criminal has had his sentence cut - on the same day police in the region said youngsters were largely to blame for a huge increase in robberies.

Sean Andrew McKerry is currently serving four years in prison for robbing a County Durham post office at knife point.

Lord Justice Kay, sitting at the Criminal Appeal Court in London, allowed an appeal against his sentence, cutting it to three years, despite admitting "you don't get many worse records than this" for someone of his age.

McKerry, 17, of Leeholme, near Bishop Auckland, was dubbed Homing Pigeon Boy for his tendency to return home after committing crimes.

Arrested 80 times since 1995, he has appeared before the courts on 16 occasions.

But last August he was sentenced to four years in a young offenders' institution at Durham Crown Court after pleading guilty to robbing Leeholme's post office, with accomplice Scott Andrew Butler.

Butler, 22, was sent to prison for four years.

But Lord Justice Kay reduced McKerry's jail term, saying because of his age, a lesser term than that of Butler should be imposed.

The court heard how McKerry and Butler entered the post office last February wearing balaclavas and demanding cash.

Butler wielded a seven-inch knife while McKerry waved a golf club in the post master's face.

They made off with £3,100 cash when the postmaster activated an alarm.

The two were caught by police hiding in the loft of McKerry's house shortly afterwards. The money, stolen to buy heroin, was never recovered.

Lord Justice Kay said the teenager's record was 'very bad'. "Those who rob post offices know that they will be punished by deterrent sentences," he added,

At the very time the pair were carrying out the raid, The Northern Echo won a landmark High Court battle for the right to reveal the identity of McKerry, who remains a juvenile.

Last night, Phil Graham, Durham county councillor for Coundon, which includes Leeholme, attacked the judge's decision and claimed there had been a noticeable drop in crime in the area since McKerry was locked up.

"It shows how out of touch these people can be," he added.

"Once the people of Coundon hear about this they will not welcome the news.

"Without this anti-hero walking the streets, crime levels and the fear of crime have fallen. There is less tension on the streets, particularly among the young."

The court ruling came as Home Office figures released yesterday showed a 33 per cent increase in robberies in County Durham.

Senior police officers say they plan to work with youth groups in a bid to tackle the alarming rise.

Crime figures - Page