A thug who was caged for a spate of violent crimes over New Year 2017 today saw his prison sentence almost doubled to 15 years by senior judges.

David Malcolm Berry, 32, was jailed in October for his part in a series of violent robberies in West Yorkshire.

It included late night masked raids at the Guide Post Hotel, in Bradford, and the Shibden Mill Inn, in Halifax.

Berry, of fixed address but formerly of Halifax, was caught out after his DNA was found on items discarded following some of his crimes.

In October, he was sentenced to eight-and-a-half years’ jail at Bradford Crown Court for three robberies, burglary, theft and dangerous driving.

But that was increased to 15 years today after three top judges at the Court of Appeal in London said his sentence was “unduly lenient”.

Lord Justice Treacy said Berry had got off too lightly for his part in “professionally planned” crime.

The court heard he and another masked man had forced their way into the Guide Post Hotel on New Year’s Eve when a porter was working alone.

One carried a hammer and the other a screwdriver and they forced him into handing over the keys to the safe, from which they took £2,800.

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On New Year’s Day, they struck at the Shibden Mill Inn, detaining another lone porter for 20 minutes as they hunted for cash.

The worker was beaten with a metal bar, stamped on and stabbed in the buttock as they demanded safe keys.

In another violent robbery Berry targeted a driver making deliveries in Halifax a few days into the year.

He threw the man from his van and drove off in it before unloading the parcels elsewhere.

Prior to New Year he had also been involved in a burglary in Halifax during which a family’s Volkswagen was taken.

The case reached court today after a reference by solicitor general Robert Buckland QC on the basis that the sentence imposed was too soft.

Barrister, Paul Jarvis, representing Mr Buckland, said the Shibden Mill Inn raid justified eight-and-a-half years, even without taking into account the other offences.

And Lord Justice Treacy, sitting with Mr Justice Picken and Judge Rupert Mayo QC, agreed, before almost doubling the sentence.

Ruling on the case, Lord Justice Treacy said the Shibden Mill Inn robbery was “professionally planned”.

The porter had been “forcibly detained”, masks had been used and CCTV footage had been removed.

Overall, Berry’s offending was “serious, repeated and planned”, he said.

“We have come to the conclusion that the least term which should have been imposed is one of 15 years,” he continued.

“It follows that the sentence imposed was unduly lenient.”

Berry, who appeared via a video link from Leeds Prison, appeared stunned as the judge increased the sentence.