Giving evidence at his own trial, Luke David Jackson denied going to the Costcutter store in Wains Road, Dringhouses, at 9.50am on Sunday, August 6.
He alleged he didn’t shop there as he used a Co-op store nearer to his home.
The jury has seen CCTV from outside the store of a man arriving with a bike, whom the prosecution say is the man seen robbing the store on internal CCTV.
Jackson claimed he was not in either of the CCTV footages.
Jackson, 28, of Jute Road, Acomb, denies robbery. The prosecution allege Jackson left his home at 9.29am that morning and returned to it at 11.10am after jumping onto the counter of the Costcutter store, threatening the shop assistant with a knife and grabbing money from its till.
Jackson told the jury he couldn’t remember where he had been that morning. He claimed that a man captured on CCTV leaving his home with a bike at 9.29am was not him. The jury heard three other people live in the house.
The prosecution allege the man on the 9.29am CCTV image was wearing a jacket and cap similar to ones worn by the robber caught on the store CCTV 20 minutes later. Jackson denied he had a green jacket. He said he had several hats.
He agreed that he was the man who was not wearing a green jacket and cap caught on CCTV entering his home at 11.10am. He rejected prosecution barrister John Hobley’s suggestion he had “ditched” the jacket and cap after the robbery because he knew they would be on the store’s CCTV.
He disputed prosecution claims that both men seen at the Jute Road house were wearing identical watches and other items on their arms.
He said he carried a knife with him “for protection purposes” and agreed he had two knives at his home, one for opening letters and one for cutting up pizza to eat. The jury heard that the prosecution accept that neither knife was the one used by the robber in the convenience store.
Jackson denied a prosecution suggestion that he had seen a chance to rob the shop assistant, who was the only member of staff in the store, pulled out a knife and robbed him.
Today, the jury will hear closing speeches by the prosecution barrister and defence barrister Holly Clegg before the Recorder of York, Judge Sean Morris sums up and sends them out to consider their verdicts.
Jackson had also denied a charge of carrying a knife in public relating to a different incident on the same morning and the judge told the jury he will direct them to return a verdict of not guilty on the knife charge because there was insufficient evidence for them to convict Jackson on it.
