‘His offending will have a lasting effect on victims’
18:10, 05 Feb 2026
Jason Cunliffe has been jailed(Image: GMP)
A serial robber lay in wait before pouncing on vulnerable women across Manchester. Ten separate incidents were recorded between August 17 and September 3 last year in Salford, Manchester and Bury.
It was reported to offers that a man had approached lone women in public spaces before forcibly stealing their handbags and belongings. He would often drag the victims to the ground and wrestle them during the robberies before fleeing on foot.
A search of a suspect’s home later revealed the man behind the crimes was Jason Cunliffe.
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Seven of the victims confirmed having had their handbags stolen. All of the reported incidents occurred in public areas, with Cunliffe deliberately targeting women who were alone or in a pair, Greater Manchester Police said.
On September 4, the day after his last attack, officers on proactive patrols spotted a man acting suspiciously in Crumpsall. On seeing the police vehicle, Cunliffe attempted to hide by ducking down next to a car.
Officers approached Cunliffe, but he fled the scene prompting a foot chase. Officers pursued him and later arrested him. After a house search, officers found 12 handbags and other items including an iPad, iPhone, Hugo Boss jumper and Samsung tablet that Cunliffe had stolen.
The 52-year-old, of Wilton Road in Crumpsall plead guilty to five counts of robbery; two counts of fraud; and one count of attempted robbery; burglary; and theft. He appeared at Manchester Crown Court on Thursday (February 5) and was jailed for 14 years.
Detective Inspector Natasha Feerick, of GMP’s City of Manchester 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 burglaries has been impressive and reaffirms our stance on tackling neighbourhood crimes such as these.”