A ROBBER begging door-to-door terrorised a young mum who was home alone with her seven-month-old baby.

Heroin addict Anthony Keefe, 35, told Charlotte Cassidy he would batter her in front of the infant and left her petrified, in tears and scared of being alone.

The incident had such an impact on Ms Cassidy she moved from her home in Bacup.

Local MP Jake Berry today welcomed the sentence handed down and said it should act as a warning that such behaviour would not be tolerated.

Burnley Crown Court heard how Keefe, who was jailed for five years, was ‘notorious’ in the area for ‘aggressively’ begging from door to door to feed his habit.

David Temkin, prosecuting, told the court Ms Cassidy was at home in the early evening and her baby was on the sofa. She was expecting her partner and uncle to return.

At between 6pm and 6.30pm, she heard footsteps, opened the front door in the fading light and saw the defendant who she did not know.

She was shocked to see him and would say he was dirty and smelled as if he had been living rough.

Mr Temkin said Keefe put a leg inside the door to stop her closing it and asked if she could do him a big favour.

The defendant told her he had lost his key, his landlord had told him to go to Blackburn for a set and when Ms Cassidy said that sounded a bit funny Keefe got angry and asked: “Are you calling me a liar?”

The victim was worried for herself and her child and offered him a couple of pounds saying she couldn’t give money to everyone who came to the door. He followed her into the house uninvited.

Ms Cassidy, who was becoming increasingly intimidated, began to shake and cry and gave Keefe £2. He said it wasn’t enough and he could see she had more cash in her purse.

She said it was for her daughter but Keefe told the victim: “I don’t care. I will batter you whilst your daughter is sitting there.”

Ms Cassidy threw Keefe £20 and told him to get out. He left and Ms Cassidy immediately phoned her partner, who called the police.

She told officers Keefe had been aggressive and she had been petrified. She said she now found it difficult being home alone, was scared to open the door and always kept it locked.

The hearing was told police had spoken to other householders in Bacup who made statements saying the defendant had used a similar method of getting money in the past. Keefe said he begged from door to door.

Keefe, of New Line, Bacup, admitted robbery.

Sentencing, Judge Philip Butler, who described the case as “disturbing, said: “Ms Cassidy must have been terrified and she is still living with the memory of that.”

Tim Storrie, for Keefe, said he expected a lengthy sentence. He had gained notoriety in Rossendale for begging from door to door for money for drugs.

He started taking heroin after three bereavements in a short time and it was 18 months before he found he was addicted. The factory where he was working closed down due to bankruptcy.

Mr Berry, who represents Darwen and Rossendale, said: “Nobody should be intimidated in their own home and it is vital that action is taken.

“While many people have problems such as this man it is wrong to intimidate people and I am glad the offender got this sentence.”