A FORMER soldier who robbed a newsagent's shop and terrified the owner's daughter, yesterday escaped with only a 12-month prison sentence after a judge heard that Northern Ireland duty left him with post-traumatic stress disorder.
James White, 32, of the Esplanade, Whitby, who admitted robbing Dr Rachel Louise Davies of cash when she looked after Peter's Newsagents in the town's Mulgrave Place for her ill father, was told by Judge Paul Hoffman the usual jail sentence for such a serious crime was three years.
He told White the drastically-reduced term was "exceptional".
But he added: "I have a good deal of sympathy for you because in serving your country you had a number of unhappy experiences which, not surprisingly, have remained with you."
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