A HOMELESS knifeman from Wrexham who used a McDonald's burger wrapper as a mask during a robbery in Wrexham has been jailed.

Matthew Lloyd Pritchard, 35, was given 42 months behind bars for robbery by Judge Rhys Rowlands after he appeared at Mold Crown Court on Thursday, November 11.

The court heard that on September 20, Pritchard entered a Lidl store in Salop Road in Wrexham, where - dressed in all black - he approached the till and began to shout.

He then pulled what was described as a 'butcher's knife' when he stopped, leaving the till area by a closed gate, and then pulled out the 10.5inch blade on a member of staff, who was six feet away.

Pritchard fled the scene and went to the Admiral Gaming Arcade in Regent Street around 10 minutes later.

He entered the premises while trying to hide his face with a McDonald's burger wrapper and, having again pulled the knife out on an employee, left with a container of coins in bags, believed to have been worth around £120.

Pritchard was then stopped by police in Powell Road where he was Tasered after he made a 'roaring sound' and was described as being 'pumped up'.

In interview, Pritchard claimed he had been 'sleeping in a field and had found the knife there' and was 'going to use it to kill rabbits for food'.

His defence highlighted his mental health issues and successfully applied for the court to accept an early guilty plea, which he had not been able to give at magistrates because of a psychiatric report which was not commissioned.

Judge Rowlands described the defendant's behaviour that night as 'absolutely terrifying'.

He added: "Police offers ought not to be put in that position. Customers were described as 'shaken' by what they saw."

Judge Rowlands added that Pritchard's behaviour had been 'very, very dangerous and has got to stop'.

Pritchard also faced two charges of affray and one charge of carrying a bladed article but received no separate penalty.