A THUG who robbed a post office with a machete to pay off drug debts has been jailed.

Lee Shelley, 20, from Barleyfield Walk, Middleton, near Rochdale, pleaded guilty at Bolton Crown Court to possessing a knife in public and robbery was today jailed for three-and-a-half years.

Shelley, who handed himself in to police, burst into the Post Office on Wood Street, Middleton, in February armed with the large machete.

The owner of the Post Office, which doubles as a newsagent, was behind a toughened glass security screen at the time and an elderly customer was shopping.

Waving the machete, Shelley demanded cash then struck out at the screen before hurling a cash till on to the floor in a bid to prise open the drawer.

He fled with just £45.

He presented himself to Middleton Police Station two days later and made a full confession, claiming he robbed the store to pay off drug debts.

Det Con Ben Harris said the elderly shopper was 'petrified'.

He said: "Shelley was clearly a desperate man who felt he had no other option but to pick up a machete and commit a robbery to pay off his drug debts. It should serve as a stark warning to people who get involved in drugs that it is not just harm to your body you are risking - addiction to drugs can lead to committing other serious crimes and time behind bars."
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