A Co Armagh man accused of carrying out three armed robberies in less than 30 minutes is to be granted bail, a High Court judge has ruled.
Patrick Wilson (32) allegedly took part in raids on convenience stores in the Mid Ulster area, taking quantities of cash, cigarettes and scratch cards.
The two-man team involved in the early-morning spree on January 30 used a stolen car which was then abandoned and set alight, according to police.
Wilson, of Churchill Park in Portadown, is charged with three counts of robbery, common assault, and taking a vehicle without the owner’s consent.
A Mace store in Ballyronan, a filling station in Ballinderry, and a Spar in Coalisland were all targeted between 6.40am and 7am.
Two men were said to have emerged from an Audi A6, entered each of the premises and demanded staff hand over money or stock.
One of the raiders brandished a firearm during some of the raids.
The Audi had been stolen from an address in Portadown earlier that morning and was discovered on fire in the town just over half an hour after the last robbery.
Wilson was arrested based on CCTV examinations carried out by police who seized a number of scratch cards during searches at his home.
He told investigating officers that they belonged to his mother.
Defence counsel Damien Halleron disputed the strength of the evidence against Wilson, describing the video footage as poor and arguing that he has not been identified by any victims or witnesses.
Insisting there was an innocent explanation for the scratch cards, Mr Halleron argued that no cash, cigarettes or firearms were located in his client’s house.
“There is no smoking gun in this case, if you’ll pardon the pun,” he submitted.
Bail was granted after Mr Justice McAlinden was informed that a relative of the defendant was prepared to put up a cash surety.
Wilson was banned from entering any of the areas targeted by the robbers as part of the terms of his release.