A TEENAGE boy has been banned from Thurrock as part of his sentence after previously pleading guilty to a number of knife-point robberies at Lakeside Shopping Centre.

The 15-year-old boy from Southend was sentenced at Southend Magistrates' Court.

The sentence follows incidents of robbery reported in Lakeside Shopping Centre, West Thurrock, in November and December last year.

Victims were targeted for their phones and clothing. They were approached by the suspect who, as part of a gang, used or threatened violence in order to take the possessions.

During the robberies some of victims were shown a knife and in one incident the defendant punched and threatened to stab the victim if he didn't hand over his phone.

PC Ben Smith, who led the investigation, said: "We take reports of robbery extremely seriously and our thorough investigation has ensured this defendant was brought before the court and sentenced for his actions.

"We know these incidents would have been extremely scary for the victims. We work hard to ensure that everyone is safe at Lakeside, whether they come to shop, work or have a night out.

"Therefore identifying and bringing this offender to justice has been a vital piece of police work."

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The defendant was sentenced to a Youth Rehabilitation Order for 12 months.

He is subject to a three-month night-time curfew and a three-month exclusion order, banning him from Thurrock outside of agreed medical or educational reasons, both monitored by electronic tagging.

He was also ordered to pay compensation to his victims.