THE MOTHER of convicted robber Daniel De Costa has blasted experts for failing to spot her son's illness, believing his crimes were part of a desperate cry for help.

De Costa, 24, was jailed for three years last month for holding Trowbridge off-licence worker Julie Grey at knifepoint in August.

The 49-year-old Trowbridge mother, who wishes to remain unnamed, admitted the Unwin's hold-up was shocking and horrifying, but angrily spoke out against the experts who failed to diagnose her son as suffering from Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, and Aspergers Syndrome.

Speaking of the pain she felt when her son became addicted to LSD aged only 12, she said this early association with drugs spiralled out of control into heroin and amphetamine addictions.

Moving to Trowbridge from Sussex six years ago, De Costa's mother said that despite the authorities failing him in the worst possible way, she would always be there to support him.

She said: "If he had been supported at an early age, none of this would have happened. He has been having problems since two-and-a-half years old.

"We have been to so many professionals and they all said there was nothing wrong with him and it was because I was a single parent.

"I have never stopped loving him and never stopped supporting him. There were times he came into the house and I had to turn him out in the rain and snow, not knowing where he was sleeping."

ADHD is a syndrome causing serious and persistent difficulties in the person, usually characterised by a weak attention disorder, the tendency to engage in dangerous activities and hyperactivity.

Affecting between three to six per-cent of the population, the number of cases in boys is thought to outnumber girls by three to one.

Sufferers sometimes turn to street drugs to boost the dopamine levels in the brain, making the user feel normal, but this can lead to serious addiction problems and overuse.

De Costa's mother explained how, even when her son asked for help from a psychiatrist, nothing was done.

She said: "Society has created him the way he is. He used drugs to make him feel better but it changed his whole personality.

"I have been through a lot with him and people shouldn't have the impression of him being all bad. He is a smashing lad who is very intelligent, but he has problems. Problems that should have been sorted when he was a child."

Andrea Bilbow, of national ADHD organisation ADDISS, said: "I think Daniel is living proof that you don't grow out of ADHD."

But Unwin's manager Tracey Ponting said: "Miss Grey does not work here any more, since the hold-up. She is obviously very upset after the incident. We are pleased he has been put away."