The Sunderland Echo reported on 3 November 2026 that Alexander Hindmarsh, 37, of no fixed address, has been jailed for seven years and four months at Newcastle Crown Court after admitting robbery, having a bladed article, aggravated vehicle taking and arson, and described him as having a criminal record and posing a high risk of future violence. A court list drawn from HMCTS shows his case, 10A41472326, was listed for sentence at that court at 10.00am the same day.
Springwell Road
The court heard that Hindmarsh and another man, who was completely out of it and did not join in the violence, got into the taxi, an £11,500 Hyundai, at Springwell Road in Sunderland on 22 August. The other man was not named.
They asked to be taken to the Asda in August. The driver advised them the store would be closed at that time, in the early hours, but Hindmarsh insisted on being taken there. It was closed. He then asked for the Asda in Boldon and was told he would have to pay first. His card was declined. The men were asked to leave and refused. Hindmarsh asked to be taken back to where they had been picked up so he could collect cash. The driver reluctantly agreed.
The robbery
Once there, Hindmarsh demanded money and threatened to cut the driver's eyeballs out. He told the driver, "I will stab you in the face, I'm a nutter", and used racial slurs.
Prosecutor Antonia Adie told the court that he pulled out a knife and held it close to the left side of the driver's cheek, used racist taunts, made further threats and hit the driver in the face twice until he was forced out of the vehicle, then told him he would take the car for a spin, and that the taxi was driven away at high speed.
A camera inside the vehicle recorded him talking about burning it out, in these words. "I've just done a knife-point robbery, I'll get a hammering for it."
He crashed into another car and a wall. The driver's phone was still in the car. Its tracker led police to the vehicle, which had fire damage on the driver's side.
The driver
A statement from the driver records nightmares and flashbacks, that he feels scared all the time and cannot go out alone, that his doctor has given him medication to help him sleep, and that he and other drivers now fear working at night. "I cannot see me ever being the same again."
Mitigation
Liam O'Brien, defending, told the court this was a difficult case to mitigate, and that Hindmarsh was homeless, has mental health problems, has a poor education and work record, and has shown remorse. "This is horrific offending, a hard working, innocent man going about his daily life is subjected to an absolutely terrifying ordeal, there is no getting around that."