A Salvation Army volunteer has been praised by a judge after fighting off a bare-chested thief wielding a wooden pole.
Valerie Smith, 68, was confronted by Daryl Cook, 30, as she parked her car and demanded her keys – claiming he was being chased.
But tough Valerie shouted “back off” at him before snatching her car keys back, Maidstone Crown Court was told.
Cook, of Chatham, admitted two offences of robbery on July 6 and July 7, 2013.
He was jailed for three years and four months on Wednesday.
Judge Michael Carroll described Mrs Smith as “remarkable and humbling” for how she dealt with the incident in Chatham, Kent, in July last year.
The judge also praised another victim who was set upon by Cook on the forecourt of a Shell petrol station in Rochester, Kent.
Cook held a knife to Mr Garrett’s neck and demanded his keys.
But the father-of-six was unable to start the Smart car and eventually fled on foot.
Mr Garrett told the court: “In a strange way I am glad this happened to me rather than someone else.
“If this had happened to somebody elderly, frail or vulnerable, their life could have changed forever.”
Judge Carroll added: “It is remarkable in a case of robbery that both victims, and certainly Mr Garrett, could be so magnanimous. It is quite humbling.”
