January 16, 2023 6.30 pm This story is over 17 months old

Joyride robber jailed after 80mph police chase

He injured himself during a dangerous car chase
Shaun Kennelly. | Photo: Nottinghamshire Police

A joyrider who injured himself during a dangerous car chase through Newark town centre, robbed an 86-year-old woman in her home after she tried to help him.

On June 20, 2022, Shaun Kennelly, 25, fled from police after stealing his mother’s car and leading them on a high-speed chase through Newark, where at one stage he was clocked driving at nearly 80mph in a 30mph zone.

After being brought to a stop in Lincoln Street, he deliberately drove at a police car to ram his way out before he then sped away, and the pursuit was cancelled to avoid endangering other members of the public.

After abandoning the damaged car in the Newark Gateway, Kennelly sought refuge in the garden of an unsuspecting woman who had found him hiding outside her house with an injury to his arm.

Within seconds of being invited into the woman’s home in Newark to get a bandage Kennelly, who was wearing no shoes or shirt throughout, suddenly grabbed her by the throat. He forced her to hand over all the cash in her purse, and fled the scene, leaving the woman shaken and with minor injuries.

Kennelly, of Cross Street in Newark, was arrested the following day, and on October 7, he pleaded guilty to robbery, dangerous driving, aggravated vehicle taking, driving while disqualified and criminal damage.

On January 13, Kennelly appeared before Nottingham Crown Court where he was sentenced to four years and five months in prison. He was also handed a 10-year restraining order against his victim and will be banned from driving for three years following his release from prison.

Detective Constable Lauren Carpenter of Nottinghamshire Police said, “It’s a damning indictment to Kennelly’s character that his first thought when this kindly woman came to his aid was to rob her in her own home.

“His actions that day were absolutely despicable, callous in the extreme, and resulted in his victim suffering a horrible ordeal that she in no way deserved.”

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