Man who dressed as elf to steal lingerie is jailed
A lab technician who dressed as a female elf to steal lingerie at knifepoint was jailed for two years today.
Robert Boyd, 45, donned a blonde Harpo Marx wig, glasses and a beanie hat to hold up a female staff member at a lingerie store in Belfast.
He claimed to have been involved in a futuristic fantasy role-playing game at the time of the robbery in December 2005.
But although a defence lawyer pleaded for leniency by telling how Boyd was now a figure of ridicule whose life was in tatters, Judge Patrick Lynch insisted he had to be imprisoned.
He also sentenced the father-of-one to a further two years’ probation after his release.
As Boyd sat impassive in the dock at Belfast Crown Court, Judge Lynch told him: “Whatever I do to you today you will have to live with the consequences of your actions for the rest of your life.”
Boyd was convicted in March by a 10-2 majority verdict after claiming during his trial that he had blurred the lines between reality and make-believe as he assumed a character called Buho.
This was a shaman, or magical elf, who carried a small Japanese sword as a weapon in the Shadowrun game, the court was told.
He was found guilty of stealing two sets of bras, knickers, suspender belts and stockings worth £250 (€365) from Orchid Lingerie.
He had claimed to have been facing pressures at work and within his marriage when he threatened the woman after haggling for a discount.
Before sentence was passed today a lawyer for Boyd, of Broadlands, Carrickfergus, Co Antrim, revealed he has since lost his job at Queen’s University Belfast.
Anthony Cinnamond, QC, also stressed that he had been carrying £400 (€585) in cash when he went into the shop to buy lingerie as his wife’s Christmas present.
The lawyer said: “It’s most unlikely that Mr Boyd carried out this robbery for financial gain.
“It’s much more likely on the basis of medical evidence that his motivation came from some twisted thoughts in the darker recess of his mind, perhaps because of his involvement in the role-playing Shadowrun game.”
Mr Cinnamond told how his client had been suffering from depression at the time, referring to the sexual abuse he said Boyd had suffered as a teenager.
His state of mind had also been affected by the discovery, just months earlier, that one of his relatives had also been subjected to similar abuse, the lawyer said.
Mr Cinnamond also told how Boyd's family would have to sell their home and move as a result of the publicity surrounding the case.
“This man of excellent character is now a convicted robber,” he said.
“Instead of being a man of good standing in the community he has become a figure of fun, derision and ridicule which must be very galling to a man who has hauled himself up by his own bootstraps.
“Unfortunately, the public knowledge of this case has led to his totally innocent wife also being lampooned about this in public.”
The lawyer questioned whether Boyd would ever be employable again within his profession, adding: “His life is now completely ruined.”
But Judge Lynch insisted that the courts must protect any small shops threatened by armed robbers.
After outlining the bewilderment among Boyd’s friends and colleagues at his actions, the judge rejected any suggestion that he had acted spontaneously.
“You went to the shop the day before similarly in disguise,” he told Boyd.
“This was not simply succumbing to a temporary aberration.
“For reasons you haven’t tried to explain, you brought a knife with you from the laboratory. You went equipped with an item which had no obvious purpose other than to threaten the person inside the shop itself.”
Judge Lynch also read details of the victim’s statement of her terrifying ordeal.
“She said: ’He was standing there with a knife like a kitchen knife, standing there holding the knife towards me horizontally.’
“She went on to say you were maybe a foot away from her, and said: ’I froze. I could not believe what I saw.’
“She was not actually physically harmed by virtue of what occurred. But I have read the statement from the injured party and it’s clear she has suffered mentally.”
The judge also cast doubt over Boyd claiming during his trial that he remembered nothing about the robbery yet was able to recollect the events when interviewed shortly after his arrest.
“Neither psychiatrist could explain this phenomenon,” Judge Lynch said.
“I strongly suspect this was simply an avoidance strategy on your part.”
