Detectives investigating two armed robberies in Somerset have charged a 45-year-old man.

Jimmy Young, of Withy Mills, Paulton, has been charged with five counts of possessing a firearm with intent to cause fear of violence, two counts of robbery and two counts of driving a motor vehicle which had been taken without the owner’s consent.

The charges follow robberies at shops in Midsomer Norton on 21st July and in Timsbury on 10th August.

In both incidents a man made off with cash after threatening staff with a firearm. Nobody was injured in either incident.

Young was charged on Friday and was remanded in custody before appearing at Bristol Magistrates’ Court on Saturday.