58-year-old jailed for life for threatening Northampton shop workers with gun and separate kidnapping
A 58-year-old man has been jailed for life after he kidnapped a woman and made her drive to Northampton, before threatening shop staff with a gun and defecating is his own hand in a bid to scare of people trying to detain him.
Ian Darren Scott, previously of Northampton, appeared at Northampton Crown Court on May 13 to be sentenced, after he pleaded guilty to a range of charges earlier this year.
The first incident happened on December 11, 2023, when Scott threatened a woman with a firearm and a knife inside her car in Milton Keynes and made her drive him to Northampton.
On December 13, at about 10.20am, Scott entered the Bargain Booze shop in Limehurst Square and threatened one of the store’s Post Office workers with a gun – which turned out to be an imitation - whilst demanding money from the till.
In an attempt to convince the worker to do as he asked, Scott made threats to kill another customer who was inside the store with her young son, according to Northamptonshire Police.
The Post Office worker pushed his panic button, and Scott went around to the Bargain Booze side of the shop where he threatened the Post Office worker’s wife.
The Post Office worker then got into a fight with Scott, hitting him over the head with a bottle of wine whilst members of the public came to his aid to try and detain the offender.
In his victim personal statement, the worker said: “I was trying to stop him as I didn’t know if he had a proper gun. I was not thinking of my own safety but of the others who were in the area. My intention wasn’t to hurt him, just to stop him hurting others. I was hoping that the police would come and get him.”
Scott defecated into his own hand and used that to scare off people trying to detain him, allowing him to run away.
Scott was charged with one count of kidnap, two counts of attempted robbery, two counts of possession an imitation firearm and one count of threatening a person with a bladed article in a public place.
Detective Inspector Helena Congreve said: “Ian Scott had only been released from prison six days prior to the incident in Milton Keynes, so this demonstrates just how dangerous he is and how much of a positive result we have achieved here in sending him back to prison.
“I want to take this opportunity to commend the Post Office worker who confronted Scott. He showed incredible bravery trying to protect both his wife and the members of the public in his store.
“I hope this results provides everyone involved with some closure and allows them to move forward knowing Scott is safely behind bars.”
Investigating officer Detective Constable John Swallow, of Milton Keynes CID, added: “This was a terrifying ordeal for the female victim involved in the kidnap offence, who was remarkably calm and brave in the circumstances.”
Scott was handed a life sentence with a minimum of six years and nine months in prison. The Post Office worker was also awarded £1,000 in compensation.