Following a joint investigation between Thames Valley Police and Northamptonshire Police, a man has been jailed for life for a kidnap in Milton Keynes.
A 58-year-old man has been handed a life sentence after he was found guilty of kidnap and attempted robbery.
On December 11, 2023, Ian Darren Scott, previously of Northampton, threatened a woman with a firearm and a knife inside her own car in Milton Keynes and made her drive him to Northampton.
Then, two days later on December 13, at about 10.20am, Scott entered the Bargain Booze shop in Limehurst Square, Northampton, and threatened one of the store’s Post Office workers with a gun whilst demanding he hand over 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.
The Post Office worker pushed his panic button, and the suspect went around to the Bargain Booze side of the shop where he threatened the Post Office worker’s wife.
The Post Office worker then bravely 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.”
In a desperate attempt to get away, Scott defecated into his own hand and used that to scare off the people trying to detain him, allowing him to run away.
But police were on their way and officers found Scott a short time later in nearby allotments where he was arrested. The firearm he was carrying turned out to be an imitation.
He was subsequently 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.
After pleading guilty to all of the offences at Northampton Crown Court in March, Scott returned to the same court last week (May 13) and was handed a life sentence with a minimum of six years and nine months in prison.
Her Honour Judge Rebecca Crane also awarded £1,000 compensation to the Post Office worker.
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.
“Tackling serious violence is a priority for Northamptonshire Police and I hope this case reassures the public regarding the speed with which we responded to this incident and the efficiency of Scott’s capture shortly afterwards.
“I also 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.
“Finally, I would like to thank the investigating team including Case Builder Rhian Parsons, and Thames Valley Police. Together we have managed to put a dangerous man in prison.”
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.
“I would like to thank Northamptonshire Police for their support in finding and arresting Ian Scott, who has now been brought to justice.
“Thames Valley Police will never tolerate this sort of offending on its patch, or when they leave our area, and will always seek to bring offenders to justice by working with our partners.”
