A CONVICTED armed robber is facing an extended sentence for public protection after confessing to trying to carry out another shop raid with a blade.

Paul Durkin was caught on CCTV trying to empty a till in a fish and chip shop in Billingham, near Stockton, while carrying a fearsome large kitchen knife.

Staff at Crispy Cod in Windlestone Road had already cashed up for the night and there was no money in the drawers, Teesside Crown Court was told.

Durkin, 29, of Horden Road, Billingham, pleaded guilty to attempted robbery, having an article with a blade or point and affray, all on January 30.

The Recorder of Middlesbrough, Judge Simon Bourne-Arton, QC, adjourned the case for a fortnight so probation officers can determined Durkin's "dangerousness".

In August 2009, he was jailed for six years for his part in a gang attack on the home of a pregnant woman and a separate assault on an innocent teenager.

Just two months after being freed from prison on licence, Durkin carried out a knifepoint robbery at The Fruit Basket in Billingham in July 2012.

In the first incident, he torched the mum’s home after it was wrecked by a gang as she slept with her 16-month-old son. He then beat a teenager over the head with a baseball bat.

The court heard in 2012 how he had wrapped a tea towel around his mouth for disguise then carried out the robbery on the shop, telling the owner: "Give me a bottle”.

The shop owner, who recognised Durkin, walked away and Durkin left with some alcohol. He was arrested later that evening and the knife was recovered.

Judge Bourne-Arton told him that a prison sentence was inevitable for his latest crime, and added: "I need you to be seen by a probation officer for a pre-sentence report to consider all aspects of your case."