TWO men who drunkenly robbed a convenience store have been jailed for a total of almost seven years.

Andrew Davies wielded a hammer as he and Nathan Moreby threw punches at two workers in the Mace Store in Bridge Street, Banbury.

The pair were sentenced at Oxford Crown Court on Wednesday.

Davies, 39 of Speedwell Street, Oxford, admitted robbery, damaging property and having an offensive weapon – the hammer – in public.

Moreby, 28 of Conway Drive, Banbury, admitted robbery.

Prosecutor Rachel Drake said Davies and Moreby were in the store with friend Lee McDermott shortly before 1am on December 28.

After “loitering close to where alcohol is stored”, the group went outside and caused a disturbance, which shop worker Ali Abas Shah went to investigate.

Miss Drake said: “When Mr Shah came back into the store he was followed by the men saying they would smash his face in, and warning him not to call police.”

Davies and Moreby then threw punches at Mr Shah and fellow member of staff Muhammad Chughtai.

After the pair fled with a couple of bottles of spirits, Davies pulled out a hammer from his back pocket and returned to the shop, waving it at the two members of staff.

Miss Drake said Davies was kept away from the shopkeepers by Mr McDermott, who was not prosecuted.

Davies smashed the store’s front door as he left.

The court was told Davies has a number of previous convictions, including being jailed for 27 months for two robberies.

Moreby was also involved in the same incident and was jailed for 18 months for wounding and causing actual bodily harm.

Graham Bennett, defending Davies, said his client “would say it never started out as any plan of robbery, only a plan to steal some alcohol”.

Clare Evans, defending Moreby, said her client “had absolutely no knowledge of, or any possession of, any weapons”.

Judge Michael Gledhill jailed Davies for four years and four months and sentenced Moreby to 30 months.