A serial robber who deliberately targeted lone women across Salford and Greater Manchester has been jailed for 14 years.
Jason Cunliffe, 52, from Crumpsall, Manchester, pleaded guilty to five counts of robbery, two counts of fraud and one count each of attempted robbery, burglary and theft.
He was sentenced at Manchester Crown Court on February 5.
Seven women targeted victims of violent handbag robberies carried out across Salford, Manchester and Bury, police said.
All incidents occurred in public and Cunliffe deliberately chose women who were alone or in pairs and victims were often dragged to the ground and wrestled before he would escape on foot.
Cunliffe’s brutal crime spree ended when he was arrested on 4 September 2025, when officers on patrol spotted him acting suspiciously in Crumpsall.
After attempting to hide from the police, he fled on foot before being pursued and arrested by Greater Manchester Police (GMP) officers.
Police carried out a house search and found 12 handbags and other items, including an iPad, iPhone, a Hugo Boss jumper, and a Samsung tablet, that Cunliffe had stolen.
GMP has returned the stolen items to the victims.
Detective Inspector Natasha Feerick, GMP’s Neighbourhood Crime Team, said: “I would like to thank the victims for reporting these incidents to us and allowing us to fully investigate.
“Thanks to these reports, neighbourhood officers were able to quickly identify and arrest Cunliffe.
“His offending will have a lasting effect on victims and I hope this result will bring some reassurance to them going forward.
“Cunliffe preyed upon women and on many occasions physically assaulted them to take items from them. He stole handbags and other items totalling thousands of pounds.
“Seeing the tenacity from officers across the district to bring justice to those that commit robberies and
