Justis Te Kahu O Te Rangi Day robbed an elderly man who was out shopping in Southport

An elderly Gold Coast man was left with chest pain and shortness of breath when a thief snatched his bag from him while out shopping.

AN elderly Gold Coast man was left with chest pain and shortness of breath when a thief snatched his bag from him while out shopping.

Justis Te Kahu O Te Rangi Day grabbed the man’s wallet, mobile phone and glasses and took off leaving 76-year-old Russell Brodie lying on the ground on September 3 last year.

Nearby shoppers performed first aid and called paramedics.

Three months earlier Day had held up a Southport Service station with a box cutter.

The Southport District Court was told the 22-year-old was desperate for cash after losing his job and had only been eating every few days.

Day pleaded guilty in the Southport District Court on Monday to armed robbery, robbery, fraud and attempted fraud.

Judge David Kent sentenced him to four years prison to be released on parole after 12 months.

“It is a very sad situation for a young, single person in an advanced economy such as Australia that someone is reduced to committing crime to feed themselves,” he said.

Crown prosecutor Jessica Guy told the court the first robbery occurred on June 19 last year when Day entered a Southport service station armed with a box cutter.

He took cigarettes and threatened the attendant with the knife until she opened the till.

“He said he just wanted the money and he didn’t want to hurt her,” she said.

Three months later Day followed Mr Brodie around while he did his shopping and grabbed his bag.

The pair struggled and Mr Brodie began to feel chest pain and shortness of breath, before falling to the ground.

The elderly man has a heart condition.

Day took off with Mr Brodie’s wallet, glasses and mobile phone.

He then spent almost $500 on Mr Brodie’s cards before they were cancelled.

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Defence barrister Hayley Robertson, instructed by Legal Aid Queensland, said Day was “extremely remorseful”.

“He has taken responsibility and expressed concern … he was very distressed when police officers informed him of Mr Brodie’s heart condition,” she said.

Ms Robertson said at the time, Day had recently lost his job with the Port of Brisbane after returning to New Zealand for a family member’s funeral.

He had only been employed casually and because he was not a citizen was not entitled to any kind of benefits.

Judge Kent also ordered Day pay Mr Brodie $627 in restitution for the incident.