The armed robber who shot a man during a brazen daylight robbery at a Devonshire supermarket was yesterday sent to jail for 28 years.

And the Supreme Court heard that Derek Roy Spalding, 22, of no fixed abode, told Police that he was sorry that he did not kill the man who stopped him from getting away.

Spalding, who told Police he wanted to be known as "Scully the gunman'', had pleaded guilty to one count of robbery, one count of attempted robbery, and two counts of using a firearm while committing an indictable offence.

Crown Counsel Brian Calhoun said Spalding went into the offices of John W.

Swan Ltd. on Victoria Street around 4 p.m. on April 4, 1996.

His face was masked and he was armed with a .22 calibre automatic pistol.

He walked to the cashier's drawer and took $6,000 in currency. When the cashier confronted him, Spalding fired one shot to permit his escape on a stolen motorcycle driven by an accomplice.

On June 1, 1996, Spalding entered Lindo's Market in Devonshire with his face covered by a mask and brandished the same pistol used in the John Swan Ltd.

robbery, continued Mr. Calhoun.

Spalding pointed the gun at a cashier and began hitting the keys to her cash register while demanding money.

When the frightened cashier could not open the drawer, Spalding pointed his gun at a customer and fired a shot at her. He fired another shot when the floor manager approached him and a struggle ensued.

Spalding fired a third shot and was chased into the parking lot by the store manager and several customers.

He tried to escape on a motorcycle but there was another struggle and customer Eugene Eversley Jr. was shot in his right arm.

However Spalding was subdued until Police arrived. Officers found six rounds of bullets in his pockets.

Mr. Calhoun said Spalding told Police that he was prepared to shoot and kill people if necessary.

He said the people at Lindo's must have thought they were "heroes'' and added that he was sorry he did not kill Mr. Eversley.

In his only expression of remorse, Spalding told Police: "The only thing that was f..ked up about it (the robbery) was the fact that there were kids present.'' After the interview he took Police to an additional 12 rounds of ammunition he had hidden near Abbots Cliff.

Mr. Calhoun told Chief Justice Austin Ward that Spalding's psychological evaluation suggested he had a high risk of re-offending because of his "total lack of remorse''.

He said Spalding "thinks such robberies are his trade, and experiences a sense of euphoria. He feels justified in harming anyone who stands in his way.'' Although defence attorney Mark Pettingill was instructed not to say anything on behalf of his client, he said he spent a great deal of time with the accused, whom he called "a bitter young man''.

"He's never had a day of affection or love from his family. And it's had a grave effect on him,'' said Mr. Pettingill.

Mr. Pettingill said he wished others could see the side of Spalding he was exposed to, and added that Spalding was not a psychopath beyond help.

Mr. Pettingill said: "I have no doubt that he's human.'' Spalding gave a 20-minute speech to the court and said: "I am not the one who needs rehabilitation... This Island's system is what needs to be rehabilitated.

"Take a good look at the system,'' he added, "because it has definitely failed me.'' Spalding said societal problems had led him to his life of crime which culminated in the armed robberies.

He said he was a product of the system after experiencing all of the Police stations during his juvenile and adult years.

Spalding, who was a secondary school dropout, added that he had difficulty adjusting to life outside of correctional institutions, and had trouble finding employment because "no one wanted to hire an illiterate ex-convict''.

"I had to find out who I was, because no one had prepared me for life (outside prison),'' he added.

He said he became depressed because he had no money, clothing, or transportation.

And he said the job he managed to secure only paid $150 per week.

"I remember thinking to myself, I'm no peasant, and I won't work just to eat and survive.'' Spalding said his parents had spent so much time working to feed their family that they spent little time raising their children.

He said "there are still slave families working in Bermuda'', and asked forgiveness for behaving like "my masters, the so-called law-abiding pirates''.

He added this was a "doomed society'', because "the two-thirds that are getting pissed on are eventually going to get pissed off.'' Spalding said he decided to become involved with the drug trade and open up a "drug store'' after which he began living "the lifestyles of the rich and famous''.

He claimed his only problem were the Police, who caused him to lose his "investments'' and his apartment so that he had to live in a tent.

He said he was not attempting to justify his behaviour, and wanted to "make a truce with my victims and the people of these Islands''.

He said he wanted to obtain an education while incarcerated and become a social worker.