JANUARY 2012

Sentences and Convictions

GCN compiles an on-going list of incidents involving guns.  In this section are sentences and convictions for court rulings, and the verdicts of inquests, made this month.

We know that our information is incomplete.  The number of incidents in our lists is between 10 and 15 percent of the total number of firearms offences recorded in Home Office and Scottish Government figures, though we believe nearly all of the most serious crimes are being included.  Your help in collecting more information would be greatly appreciated.  If you have any information about an incident please contact us by email contact@gun-control-network.org.

Please see our explanation of why we highlight incidents involving air weapons.

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ENGLAND

East London Lines, 31 January 2012

Four men from east London and Essex have been jailed after they were caught en route to robbing a drugs safe. Kevin Hunter, 18, was jailed for ten years after being found guilty of conspiracy to rob and possession of a firearm with intent to commit an indictable offence. Aaron Morris, Mark Morris and Mark Bines were jailed for eight years each after being found guilty of conspiracy to rob and conspiracy to supply drugs.

The Star, 28 January 2012

Andrew Marsh has been jailed for 14 months for possession of a firearm with intent to cause fear of violence after threatening an 18-year-old with an imitation handgun in Doncaster. The victim approached Marsh's house believing Marsh's son may have insight into a recent burglary at the victim's family home. Then Marsh, 46, who had been drinking, escalated the confrontation by verbally threatening to shoot the teenager and brandishing the firearm.

Telegraph and Argus, 28 January 2012

Michael Stenhouse has been jailed for nine years after carrying out a failed armed robbery and a shooting incident in Bradford. Stenhouse, high on cocaine and armed with a sawn-off shotgun, threatened a man at a property company and demanded cash. The victim gave Stenhouse access to the safe, but no money was available. The next night two men armed with a sword and a firearm reportedly went to a party at Stenhouse's home and demanded payment for a drug debt. Stenhouse fired his shotgun four times, wounding a guest in the foot. He rang police, who then recovered the gun and other weapons. Stenhouse admitted armed robbery, possessing a firearm with intent to cause violence and possessing a prohibited firearm.

Birmingham Mail, 28 January 2012

Keith Dandy has been jailed for seven and a half years after firing a handgun into the air seven times in central Birmingham, terrorising members of the public. Dandy admitted possessing a prohibited weapon and possessing live ammunition without a firearms certificate.

The Argus, 28 January 2012

Martin Reilly has admitted seven counts of robbery and eight counts of possessing an imitation firearm. Reilly carried out a series of armed robberies across the Sussex area while wearing a variety of disguises, before he was finally caught and pleaded guilty to 15 of 20 charges brought against him.

BBC News, 27 January 2012

Victor Franklin has been jailed for five and a half years for robbing two banks in Nottingham. Franklin admitted two counts of robbery and possessing an imitation firearm with intent to cause fear of violence.

The Star, 27 January 2012

Alan Steele has been jailed for 18 months after threatening to kill a teenager with an imitation gun and stabbing him with a screwdriver. Steele initially tried to break up a row between two girls in Sheffield but he was then attacked by the boyfriend of one of the girls. Steele then brandished the gun and stabbed the boy with the screwdriver.

Yorkshire Post, 27 January 2012

Ian Allen has been given a 12-month community order after admitting possessing a prohibited weapon. Police recovered a homemade stun gun from his home in Leeds after executing a search warrant in March 2011, five days after he was caught using an iron bar as an offensive weapon.

Hartlepool Mail, 26 January 2012

Keith Casey, 18, has been sentenced to nine months in youth detention after shooting a man in Hartlepool with a BB gun. Casey, who shot the victim four times after the pair had previously fought, pleaded guilty to possessing a firearm when he was prohibited to do so. He was banned from having a firearm for five years.

Barnet Today, 26 January 2012

Vasile Christian David, 22, has been jailed for six years for his role in a post office robbery in East Barnet. His accomplice, Iulian Anisiu, was previously imprisoned but David had to be extradited from Romania. The pair were joined by a third perpetrator, still at large, as they attacked a 74-year-old man and threatened him with imitation firearms. They stole cash and stamps before escaping, leaving the victim to be taken to intensive care for his injuries.

North Devon Journal, 26 January 2012

Christopher Searle has been given a three-month custodial sentence after pleading guilty to possessing a shotgun without a certificate. Searle reportedly kept the gun as an ornamental feature in his home in Braunton, Devon but had not taken steps to disable the weapon. 

Bury Free Press, 25 January 2012

Adam Fairbrass and Trevor Summers have each been jailed for eight years following an attempted armed robbery on a post office in Hopton, Suffolk. The pair pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit armed robbery after one of them threatened staff in the post office with a handgun and knife, then escaped with the help of the other. 

Bolton News, 25 January 2012

Rias Atcha, Faheem Kola, Babar Khan and Mohammed Khan, aged 19 to 26, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to rob after carrying out a series of violent robberies in Bolton and Burnley. The gang was apparently responsible for three robberies which took place at a jewellery shop and two houses. In one house, the robbers tied up an elderly couple and threatened them with a gun and an axe before stealing cash and jewellery. 

Falmouth Packet, 25 January 2012

Dean Lewis pleaded guilty to possessing an imitation firearm with intent to cause fear of violence after he held up a woman in Falmouth, Cornwall. Lewis, who has a long record of burglary and theft convictions, approached the victim at her home and brandished a BB gun. 

Bury Free Press, 24 January 2012

Paul Falco has been jailed for 12 months after being caught in possession of an unlicensed shotgun. Police discovered the illegal weapon in Falco's home in Beck Row, Suffolk. Falco's sentence was suspended two years but he was also ordered to complete 180 hours of unpaid community work within the next year. 

Your Local Guardian, 23 January 2012

Four men have been jailed for a series of gun violence in south London. The men carried out five armed robberies and also shot two victims in a hostel, wounding one in the leg and the other in three places. The victims were hospitalised but recovered and were present at the trial. Andre Abrahams, 26, and Gladstone Allen, 20, were jailed for ten years and eight years, respectively, after being convicted of two counts of attempted murder, possession of a firearm with intent to endanger life and robbery. Meanwhile Ishmael Baptiste, 21, and Romaine Gayle, 18, were jailed for seven years and six and a half years, respectively, for robbery.

Worthing Herald, 21 January 2012

Simon Stanton has been jailed for three and a half years for attempted armed robbery in Worthing, West Sussex. Stanton threatened staff members with an imitation gun at a jewellers in July 2011, but was tackled and held by the owner and an ex-police officer.

Shields Gazette, 21 January 2012

Karl McDonald was fined for possessing a stun gun at his home in South Shields, Tyne and Wear. McDonald legally bought the weapon in Thailand but police found the prohibited firearm while in his address for an unrelated matter. He was ordered to pay £550.

Manchester Evening News, 20 January 2012

Humayun Ashraf has been jailed for five and a half years for possessing a prohibited weapon, driving while disqualified, driving with no insurance and breaching a suspended sentenced passed for dangerous driving. Ashraf was pulled over in Cheetham Hill, Manchester and police recovered a sub-machine gun that he was holding for gangsters. Ashraf had been a successful businessman who went into debt after a failed enterprise, and apparently was pressured into holding the gun for organised criminals.

Kidderminster Shuttle, 20 January 2012

Olivia Windridge, 19, Liam Moody, 20, and Thomas Freeman, 20, have been jailed for three years each after attacking a man with a BB gun in Kidderminster, Worcestershire. Windridge lured the victim to a discreet area on the promise of exchanging sexual acts for money, before Moody and Freeman assaulted him. They fired a shot and then attacked the victim with a stick before stealing his wallet. However, police quickly arrested the trio and they pleaded guilty to the robbery.

Coventry Telegraph, 20 January 2012

Jake Ilsley, 17, has been given a 12-month youth rehabilitation order after spending five months on remand for possessing live ammunition. Ilsley was caught with hunting rifle bullets that police found at his house after catching him riding in a stolen van on his 17th birthday in Radford, Coventry. Ilsley also has previous convictions for carrying a loaded shotgun and possessing an imitation firearm, but a judge decided not to jail him further.

Oxford Mail, 20 January 2012

Timothy Hook has been given a 12-month conditional discharge and a fine after brandishing a shotgun at dog-walkers in Cote, Oxfordshire. Hook reportedly threatened two men who were walking on his land after they thought it had been a public right-of-way. Despite apparently threatened to shoot the men and their dogs if they returned, Hook's charge was decreased from using a firearm with intent to cause fear down to common assault. He was therefore spared jail and ordered to pay £475.

Your Local Guardian, 19 January 2012

Ismail Abbas has been jailed for 11 years after carrying out at least two armed robberies in south London. Abbas stole tens of thousands of pounds by leading armed attacks on a transit van and a store, armed with imitation guns and other weapons. The self-proclaimed 'role model' was acquitted of two further counts of conspiracy to commit robbery on other transit vans but was given sentences of five years and six years for the proven attacks to run consecutively.

Express and Star, 19 January 2012

Dominic Hawkins, 21, and Julian Downes, 20, were jailed for ten years and six years, respectively, after an attempted armed robbery in Walsall, West Midlands. The men grabbed and threatened a 71-year-old woman with an imitation gun and a screwdriver in a corner shop before fleeing empty-handed. Hawkins was also found guilty of an earlier attempted robbery and received the ten-year sentence in total.

BBC News, 19 January 2012

Trevor Summers and Adam Fairbrass have been jailed for eight years each after admitting conspiracy to commit armed robbery. Summers robbed a post office in Suffolk, threatening staff with a gun and a knife before Fairbrass drove the getaway car.

Flintshire Chronicle, 19 January 2012

Kieran Griffiths, 17, has been jailed for three years and four months after pleading guilty to robbery and possessing an imitation firearm. Griffiths and an accomplice held up a post office in Hulme, Manchester, but fled when a panic alarm was activated. He was hit by a car as he ran away and lost a trainer, which police used to trace him along with the imitation handgun which they found nearby.

Bedfordshire News, 15 January 2012

Michael Bryce has been jailed for five years after trying to send a firearm from Bedfordshire to Northern Ireland. Bryce reportedly attempted to send a handgun in a package that could not be detected by scanning machines. However officials at East Midlands airport identified the weapon and the former security guard was arrested in February 2011.

Coventry Telegraph, 14 January 2012

Four men have been jailed following an armed robbery on a pub in Coventry in September 2011. The group threatened occupants with an imitation gun and an axe during the ordeal, attempting to steal cannabis they believed was being grown in the pub. Welesley Anderson, Damon Beardsmore, Benjamin Patterson and Ryan Samuels, all aged 21-25, each admitted aggravated burglary and Anderson also admitted possessing an imitation firearm. Anderson, Beardsmore and Patterson were each jailed 10 years, while Samuels received 15 years.

Your Local Guardian, 14 January 2012

Four young men were jailed after carrying out an armed robbery in Bromley, south London. They threatened staff in a money shop with a handgun in July 2010 and stole cash, but were caught as they attempted to escape. Clifton Thomas-Bassir, Caniggia Jarrett, Sederick Semko and an unnamed 17-year-old were each found guilty of robbery and possession of a firearm. Thomas-Bassir was sentenced to 10 years, Jarrett to eight and a half years, and the teenager received six years. Semko, the only one to admit guilt, received five and a half years imprisonment.

Halifax Courier, 13 January 2012

Marcin Kasprzak has been jailed for 20 years for attempted murder after attacking his girlfriend in Huddersfield in May 2008. Kasprzak shot the victim twice with a stun gun before he bound and gagged her, forced her into a cardboard box and buried her alive. He then took her bank card and withdrew 500 pounds before being caught at the home of his accomplice, 18-year-old Patryck Borys, who was sentenced to four and a half years at a young offenders institute for kidnapping. The victim managed to survive and escape, and now has sole custody of the son she had with Kasprzak one month before the attack. He was later given a four year concurrent sentence, and refused an appeal to shorten this sentence, for having large amounts of explosives for making dynamite and gunpowder, and instructions for their manufacture, which were found at his home during the investigation (Huddersfield Daily Examiner, 13 May 2013).

BBC News, 13 January 2012

Darren Jewell has been jailed for life after murdering a man in St. Osyth, Essex. Jewell shot the victim with a shotgun twice in May 2011, causing fatal wounds to the man's abdomen. Jewell must serve a minimum of 30 years for the murder.

Wigan Today, 13 January 2012

Matthew Maguire has been jailed for 11 years after being caught with a firearm, ammunition and a link to a drug-dealing operation in Wigan. Maguire and three others were jailed for possessing and dealing a large amount of cannabis, and their sentences totaled more than 33 years.

Lancashire Evening Post, 12 January 2012

Pierre Samson has been jailed for four and a half years after firing a gun at a group of people in Preston. Samson was convicted of possessing a firearm with intent to endanger life after the gang-related shooting. Aymen Benkhalifa was previously jailed for seven years after driving Samson's getaway car. Benkhalifa was found guilty of possessing a firearm with intent to cause fear of violence.

Westmorland Gazette, 11 January 2012

Allan Armistead, 74, has been fined and ordered to do unpaid community work after pleading guilty to firearms charges and possessing illegal poisons in Ulverston, Cumbria. He held four shotguns illegally on his farm, in addition to several 'highly toxic' pesticides. Armistead was ordered to carry out 140 hours of unpaid work and was fined £7,000.

North West Evening Mail, 11 January 2012

Daniel Adams has been found guilty of possessing an air rifle with intent to cause fear of violence. Adams threatened another man with the airgun in Barrow, Lancashire after the victim confronted Adams at Adams' home. The incident was the result of a dispute over the victim's son, who lives with Adams. The victim reportedly grabbed the loaded weapon and left the house with it before police got involved.

Times Series, 9 January 2012

Four teenagers have been jailed for trying to murder a man at Harlesden Tube Station in southeast London in March 2011. The victim escaped after being shot in the back with a shotgun, surviving after surgery for wounds in his spine and liver. Jordan Gabbidon, 17, and Samuel Woods, 16, were jailed indefinitely for attempted murder and will serve a minimum of six years and three months. Ola Salu, 18, was sentenced to six years for possession of a firearm in a public place. The only female member of the group, Chantelle Franklin, 17, was also jailed for six years for possessing a firearm in public and perverting the course of justice.

Enfield Independent, 9 January 2012

Darren Lloyd has been jailed for 18 years after leading a gang of eight in committing 30 robberies in north London. The other seven men have also been convicted for their roles and will be sentenced at a later date. In many of the raids, Lloyd's men were armed with imitation guns as well as a claw hammer. Lloyd recruited a former police officer to wear a real firefighter's uniform during some of the robberies, which apparently netted £200K.

Harrow Times, 9 January 2012

Three men have been jailed for committing a string of armed robberies in northwest London in July 2011. Jamie Owen, 23, was sentenced to six years for conspiracy to rob and possession of an imitation firearm. Aaron Williams, 26, and Luke Barnard, 19, were both jailed for conspiracy to rob and possession of a firearm. They received six years and six months and four years and six months, respectively.

Hereford Times, 9 January 2012

Malcom White has been convicted of 11 firearms offences in addition to producing a controlled drug. White and his partner, who was also guilty of the drugs charge, were caught growing cannabis on an isolated farm in Herefordshire.

Bradford and District Advertiser, 7 January 2012

Kashif Raza has pleaded guilty to six charges relating to drugs and firearms in Bradford. Raza admitted possessing a stun gun and possessing ammunition without a firearms certificate, in addition to possessing crack cocaine and criminal property.

Evening Gazette, 6 January 2012

Christopher Healey has been convicted of handling four stolen imitation guns in Middlesbrough. The stolen weapons were recovered by police following a search, and Healey was arrested. He was convicted of the charges after failing to appear in court for his trial.

Worcester News, 5 January 2012

Phillip Scarrott, 22, has been jailed for six and a half years after admitting armed robbery and possession of an imitation gun. Scarrott and one other man invaded the home of a disabled 63-year-old man in Worcester, demanding cash. When they pistol-whipped and choked the victim he responded by biting one and hitting the other with a bed-warming pan. Scarrott's DNA was found on the pan, but his accomplice was not captured.

BBC News, 5 January 2012

Scott Davidson, 22, has been sentenced to life imprisonment for murdering a man in Chester in March 2011. Davidson, who owed the victim a large amount of money, shot him in the chest and stabbed him eight times in the neck. The killer's girlfriend, 20-year-old Rachel Horton, pleaded guilty to manslaughter and was sentenced to eight years at a young offenders' institution. Davidson, who had claimed self-defence but was convicted by a majority verdict, must serve a minimum of 30 years in prison.

Barnet and Whetstone Press, 5 January 2012

Mohamed Hassan, 24, has been jailed for eight years for robbery, possession of a firearm and possession of crack cocaine. Hassan held up a shop in 2005 with two other men, as the raiders fired a shot before leaving the store. Hassan escaped to Egypt and then to the United States, where he was extradited to the UK in November 2011.

Coventry Telegraph, 4 January 2012

Six men were jailed after they were found guilty of conspiring to supply drugs in Rugby, Warwickshire. John Logue and Anton Dimarino were jailed for 13 years and ten years, respectively, after additionally being convicted of possessing a sawn-off shotgun. Police recovered the illegal weapon during their investigation along with tear gas, body armour and a large amount of drugs.

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SCOTLAND

STV, 13 January 2012

Michael Hannah, 20, admitted culpably and recklessly firing an airgun and placing children in a state of fear. Hannah shot the air weapon at a group of kids in Nairn, Highland after they threw snowballs at his front door. He initially threatened the children, aged 12 to 15, by brandishing a knife, then fired 'warning shots' with the airgun. A judge deferred sentence because his girlfriend threw him out of the home he had defended.

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WALES

Wales Online, 17 January 2012

Joseph Nyamaswa, 18, has admitted possessing a firearm and carrying out two armed robberies in Cardiff. He held up a pair of shops in July 2011, stealing cash and cigarettes.

Daily Post, 12 January 2012

Barry Guy has been jailed for six and a half years for possessing a prohibited weapon and possessing a shotgun with intent to cause fear of violence. Guy brandished the sawn-off shotgun in a club in Rhyl after accidentally firing it in a taxi on the way, nearly killing the driver. He fled the country following the incident in July 2011 but was later arrested in Glasgow.