Jail for robber who pulled woman from car

A violent robber who pulled a woman out of her car and stole it has been jailed.

Jerry Johnson, 27, was in a vehicle following the white SEAT Leon along the Stanground bypass, Peterborough, at about 12.30am on Sunday, 9 January, 2022.

The victim’s car had a flat tyre and she was driving slowly when the vehicle, with Johnson inside, began tailgating her and flashing its lights.

Pictured: Jerry Johnson, 27. 

She pulled into a lay-by and Johnson reached through the open window to open the door and pull her out of the car.

The victim ran off and returned to the lay-by later that day to find the car had gone.

A tracker fitted to the Leon found it had been driven to Inhams Road in Whittlesey about an hour after the robbery and Nursery Road in Boston, Lincolnshire, the following day.

The car was located at a car dealership and a dealer told officers he had purchased the Leon from Whittlesey which turned out to be 12 hours after it was stolen. 

It had been advertised for sale on Facebook under a false name and officers managed to trace Johnson through his bank account details, phone records and an identification parade. 

When Johnson was confirmed to be the suspect in the robbery, officers discovered he was in prison for a burglary series in Lincolnshire and was arrested at HMP Lincoln.

On Wednesday (20 August), at Cambridge Crown Court, Johnson, of Aspley Road, Bedford, was jailed for three years and three months having been found guilty of robbery by a jury at an earlier hearing.  

DC George Corney, from the force’s Acquisitive Crime Team, said: “This was a horrifically frightening ordeal for the victim who was travelling alone at night and dragged out of her vehicle. 

"She was then assaulted by Johnson who she assumed had pulled over to help her. We will continue to do everything in our power to put prolific and opportunistic thieves like Johnson before the courts.”