A TEENAGER who sprayed three family members in the face with a noxious substance in a knife point robbery in Northolt has been jailed for five years.

A 52-year-old woman and her two teenage children had their takeaway snatched by a gang of four men while parked at the drive-through of a fast food restaurant in Church Road.

It was about 3am on Saturday May 2 when the men, including balaclava-clad 19-year-old Marco Madeo, approached their car and sprayed the poisonous substance through the window, police said.

As the woman was blinded and gasped for breath, she felt a knife blade at her throat and one of the suspects threatened to kill her and her children in they did not hand over their belongings.

The men took a handbag and the takeaway from the back seat and ran to another car in Church Road. When the car failed to start, they ran off down the road.

Madeo, of no fixed abode, was sentenced at Isleworth Crown Court last Friday, October 2, after pleading guilty to two offences of robbery, attempted robbery and dangerous driving.

He had been arrested on Chiswick High Road in May following a pursuit, after failing to stop for officers. 

Detective Constable Keran Talior said: "This was a terrifying ordeal for the victims and they continue to deal with the trauma of the robberies today, but I hope they find some reassurance in knowing that this man is now in prison serving a lengthy term in jail.

"I hope this investigation demonstrates that the police will do everything we can to catch those who commit violent crimes and put them before the courts."