Ex- Premier League player jailed for 15 years for armed robbery

By Daily Sports on July 21, 2016

A former England footballer who turned to armed robbery after racking up gambling debts from a habit he picked up in the top flight has been jailed for 15 years.

Nathan Ashton, 29, who played Premiership football on the wing for Fulham before moving to Crystal Palace and Charlton targeted betting shops across London and the South East.

Along with former Scottish Premier League player Ohmar Pike, the pair netted nearly £15,000 from eight raids.

In one raid, a cashier “fell to his knees and had a panic attack and begged for his life”, a court heard.

A robber then put a gun to the back of his head and said: “I’m going to blow your head off, if you don’t open the safe”.

Ashton, who made 20 appearances for England teams from under-16 to under-19 level, developed a gambling habit as a footballer.

But, following a rape allegation – for which he was later acquitted – he “lost his livelihood”, and his debts spiralled out of control, apparently reaching £100,000 last August.

He started robbing betting shops after a friend suggested it was an easy way to raise cash, Kingston Crown Court heard.

Ashton carried out two robberies alone in February last year, and carried out eight raids with former Gretna FC player Pike, 27, between May and October 2015.

Father-of-two Pike, who played for the Scottish club for 18 months before the they went into administration in 2008, became involved after he fell into debt.

Culled from sun.co.uk. Photo shows Nathan Aston

 

Source Daily Sports

Posted July 21, 2016


 

You may also like...
Mikel Rated Best Passer In Turkey

Orange signs new 8-year partnership with CAF as...

Barcelona, Real Madrid and Juventus ‘To Carry On...

Vinicius shines as Real Madrid beat stubborn Valladolid...

I trust Toure – Guardiola

Venus takes out Chinese, hungry for more

 

Latest News 'Perfect night' for Chelsea as 'exciting' Estevao gives glimpse of future Chelsea & Aston Villa fined for breaching Uefa financial rules Galatasaray to meet Osimhen next week Chelsea edge Palmeiras 2–1 to advance to Club World Cup semis Fluminense beat Al-Hilal to reach Club World Cup semi-finals Joshua, Wilder teams in contact over long-awaited clash Rashford to return to Man Utd training on Monday Liverpool postpone pre-season return following Jota death White House to host UFC event, says Trump Barca target Williams signs 10-year Bilbao deal Death of Liverpool forward Jota leaves football world in shock Will Chelsea's own 'Little Messi' end their Club World Cup hopes?

 

Most Read Rangers International going, going . . . (55,562 views) Amaju Pinnick: A cat with nine lives (46,727 views) Second Term: Amaju Pinnick, Other NFF Heavyweights Home to Roost •How Pinnick Broke the Jinx (44,739 views) Missing $150,000 IAAF Grant: Solomon Dalung’s Hide and Seek game (44,333 views) Current issues in Nigerian sports: Matters arising (44,331 views) Sports Development: Zenith Bank on the zenith (44,320 views) Gov. Abdullahi Ganduje’s solid footprints, commitment to sports development in Kano State (44,124 views) NFF Presidency: Pinnick, Maigari, Ogunjobi, Okoye in Battle for Supremacy (43,668 views) Olopade, BET9A wave of revolution in NNL (42,776 views) Commonwealth Games 2018: Shame of Muhammadu Buhari, Solomon Dalung (41,390 views) Ibrahimovic’s Man U exit: Whose decision is it? And in whose interest? (39,835 views) John Mikel Obi: Segun Odegbami’s Outrageous Call! (39,260 views)

 

Phone numbers

Tel: +234(0)8066020976
+234(0)8055068145
+234(0)7013416146
+234(0)8094272884

Email addresses

info@dailysportsng.com
support@dailysportsng.com
publisher@dailysportsng.com

Office address

No 3, Adetoun Close, Off College Road, Ogba, Ikeja Lagos.
Website: www.dailysportsng.com

Social Media