Robbery on Market Street ends in long sentence after CCTV identification
A man who threatened to stab a shop worker during a robbery in Crewe has been sentenced to eight years and six months in prison. The offender, identified through CCTV and retroactive facial recognition, was arrested after boarding a train at Crewe and later being detained at Coventry Station.
The case concerns an incident on Friday 27 June last year at a mobile phone retailer in the Market Street area of Crewe. According to court reports, the defendant asked to see several devices, including an iPhone 16 Pro Max, before attempting to snatch two phones from the counter. When a member of staff challenged him, the man produced a knife and threatened to stab the worker, also telling him he would return to kill him. He fled the scene with one iPhone.
How police tracked him down
Officers carried out CCTV enquiries showing a person matching the suspect’s description leaving the Market Street area and heading towards Crewe Railway Station, where he boarded a train. Retroactive facial recognition software was then applied to footage from inside the shop and station, producing a positive identification.
Following that identification, the suspect was circulated as wanted to forces across the country and to the British Transport Police. He was located and arrested by armed officers and British Transport Police when his train arrived at Coventry Station about two-and-a-half hours after the robbery. Police recovered both the stolen iPhone and the knife at the time of arrest.
Defendant’s background and court outcome
The man, 28-year-old Steven Zehi of Great Amwell Lane, Hornsey, London, pleaded guilty to three counts of robbery and to possession of a knife in a public place. In addition to the Crewe offence, enquiries established he was wanted in connection with two other robbery offences in London on 30 April and 10 June 2025, to which he also pleaded guilty.
Zehi refused to leave his cell for interview after being brought back to Cheshire and declined to answer questions from officers, court reports say. At his hearing at Wood Green Crown Court he was given a custodial sentence of eight years and six months.
“The use of CCTV and timely co‑ordination with transport police led to his swift arrest and recovery of the stolen property,” the prosecution summary states.
The sentencing marks a significant outcome for a case that involved a local retail worker being threatened with a weapon in broad daylight on a busy street in Crewe.
Local impact and policing response
Incidents of this nature can unsettle shop staff and the wider community. The successful identification and arrest demonstrate co‑operation between local policing units, British Transport Police and other forces, along with the application of video analysis technology.
- Victim: Mobile phone shop worker in Market Street, Crewe
- Offender: Steven Zehi, aged 28, of Great Amwell Lane, Hornsey
- Sentence: Eight years and six months in prison
- Key evidence: CCTV, retroactive facial recognition, recovered iPhone and knife
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| 27 June (year preceding sentencing) | Robbery at Market Street mobile phone retailer, Crewe |
| Same day, approx. 2½ hours later | Arrest at Coventry Station; stolen iPhone and knife recovered |
| 30 April & 10 June 2025 | Previous robberies in London linked to the defendant |
| Sentencing | Wood Green Crown Court — eight years and six months |
While the legal process has concluded with a substantial sentence, the case raises ongoing questions for local traders about staff safety and the role of technology in policing. The conviction should offer some reassurance to Crewe residents that offenders threatening harm in town are being pursued and removed from the streets.
