Falklands veteran jailed for armed robbery tries to appeal case

Howard Jones is serving a 12-and-a-half year stint behind bars after pleading guilty last year to blackmailing his former boss at N&B Foods, as well as robbery, possession of a firearm, false imprisonment, causing actual bodily harm, and assaulting an emergency worker.

Earlier this week, he represented himself at the Court of Appeal hoping to renew an application for an extension of time which would give him 540 days' leave to appeal against count six of his conviction.

The judge rejected his application.

Howard Jones (Image: Wiltshire Police)

Jones had worked for N&B Foods for around six months but was dismissed in March 2020.

The ex-Para, who was involved in the Falklands War, took cash from the company. He claimed during his original case he wanted to expose the weak system in operation. He alleged health and safety issues and wrongdoing by other staff members.

On May 25, 2020, he bombarded N&B Foods director Babu Chavda with 11 telephone calls.

The final call was answered. Jones didn’t give his name but warned Mr Chavda he would shoot his son if the company boss didn’t pay £50,000 wrapped in foil. He then asked for further payments totalling £250,000.

This call was reported to the police, and the detective investigating the earlier theft allegation recognised Jones’ voice from the video-recorded interview. He was arrested at 9.20pm and call records still on his phone pointed to him telephoning Mr Chavda.

While on bail, he visited Wiltshire Shooting Centre in Devizes on June 11, claimed he needed a gun to deal with a rat infestation, and was shown a number of models, but left because they were too expensive. He returned the following day and paid £88.50 for a second-hand BB gun.

On June 16, driver Piotr Giowanowicz returned to N&B Foods’ compound in the Rivermead industrial estate in his lorry and was surprised to find the gates were shut.

He opened the gate and drove into the forecourt. Suddenly, the passenger door opened and Jones, wearing a balaclava and carrying a pair of bolt croppers in one hand and a pistol in the other – demanded: “Where is your safe?”

Jones took Mr Giowanowicz’s mobile phone then reached behind the passenger seat and tried to grab the cash safe. He ordered the driver out of the cab at gunpoint and into the back of the truck.

Nilesh Chavda was working in the office when he saw a lorry being driven erratically in the yard. He went out to investigate and found the lorry cab empty with the engine left ticking over, then opened the back door to find Mr Giowanowicz looking shocked and panicked, then saw Jones.

The defendant swore and told him to get in the truck. Nilesh Chavda fled up the road, fearing for his life.

Operations manager Steven Riley was on his way home when he saw Jones walking towards him, then returned to the office and tried to persuade the gunman to stop what he was doing - telling him he was making a big mistake.

Jones held the pistol first against the operations manager’s chest then his head. When the gunman cocked his weapon, Mr Riley handed over a box of keys to the lorry safes.

The robber got behind the wheel of the DAF truck and drove away but armed officers had already been alerted to the robbery. They confronted Jones in Ridge Green. He got back in the cab, with the gun visible in his hand, and the lorry began to roll forwards.

One of the officers, named in court as PS12, fired his Taser at Jones twice.

The officer said: “I remember the black of the muzzle pointing at me for what seemed like a very long time and distinctly remember thinking to myself, ‘I’m dead.’”

While being Tasered, Jones accidentally fired at the armed officer – striking him in the face with a ball bearing.

That officer shouted at his colleague: “It’s a BB gun.” But the warning did not seem to have been heard because the colleague fired a single round from his automatic rifle, piercing the lorry door and hitting Jones in the leg.

Both officers then immediately began to perform first aid.

After the incident the shot officer had the ball bearing removed at hospital. In a statement, he said it frequently occurred to him that if the BB gun been a lethal weapon then he would be dead.

Jones was taken to Southmead Hospital in Bristol where, on June 19, he assaulted Sgt Ho Tsang, who had been tasked to guard him as he received treatment in a private room.