A man and woman from Swindon have been sentenced after a violent knife-point robbery in Stratton St Margaret that forced the victim to leave the town. Matthew Brown, 38, of Ermin Street, received three years in prison, while Laura Taylor, 36, of Affleck Close, Toothill, was handed a two-year suspended sentence at Swindon Crown Court on 9 July 2026, Wiltshire Police confirmed.
On 1 May 2024, Taylor lured the victim, a man in his 40s, from an address before Brown confronted him armed with a large knife. Brown held the blade to the man’s throat while demanding money, and the ordeal continued into the communal area of a nearby block of flats. The victim handed over cash before the pair fled. Det Con James Pugh said the victim escaped with minor physical injuries but has been left with significant mental trauma and ultimately had to relocate away from Swindon for his own safety.
Brown pleaded guilty on the first day of his trial in April 2026 to robbery, affray, and possession of an offensive weapon. Taylor admitted affray at the same hearing. Det Con Pugh noted that the strength of the prosecution case, supported by courageous witnesses, left the defendants with little option but to enter guilty pleas. Brown was ordered to pay a £228 surcharge, while Taylor must pay £187. Both received restraining orders. Taylor’s suspended sentence also includes requirements for 12 months of mental health treatment, 26 days on an accredited programme, and drug dependency treatment.
The sentencing brings an end to a two-year legal process that began with the attack in May 2024. Wiltshire Police said the three-year term handed to Brown reassures both the victim and the wider public that a dangerous individual will remain off the streets. The force stressed its commitment to pursuing all reports of crime vigorously to protect communities from violent offenders.
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