FEBRUARY 2008
We prepare
a monthly summary of gun incidents, focussing on those that raise key
issues about the nature of gun crime and the adequacy of gun legislation. Items that
have been amended or added to the list since the
Summary was written are marked (*).
ENGLAND
Lancashire Evening Post,
29 February 2008
Karl Brown shot a rival in the
chest at close range in Ribbleton in May 2007. He was found
guilty of attempted murder and has been locked up for at least eleven years.
Fleetwood Weekly News,
29 February 2008
A gunman who tried to rob a
building society in Middleton, Greater Manchester, left empty-handed
after the cashier refused to hand over money.
Enfield Independent,
29 February 2008
A man was tied up at gunpoint by
a gang of five men who stole air weapons
from his gun cabinet at his home in Winchmore Hill, North London.
They forced their way into the house and forced him to hand over the key to
the cabinet.
Cambridge News,
29 February 2008
A milkman was robbed at gunpoint
while making his deliveries in the Meldreth and Kneesworth
areas near Royston in Hertfordshire. He was approached by two men on
an off-road motorbike who pulled out a dark coloured rifle and demanded
money. They took cash from the wallet inside the van.
BBC,
29 February 2008
A total of 43 firearms were
among 117 weapons recovered during Operation Kartel, a two week police
initiative to tackle youth crime in 11 London boroughs which resulted
in 780 arrests. It led to a 50% reduction in gun crime compared with
the same period in 2007. The firearms included
replicas and CS gas canisters and five
handguns capable of shooting living ammunition (Evening Standard, 29
February 2008).
BBC,
29 February 2008
Police officers seized two
firearms during raids on properties in Nottingham which also resulted
in the recovery of a quantity of drugs. One of the firearms was
loaded. The raids, which resulted in 55 arrests, were part of
Operation Glacier aimed at cracking down on Nottingham's drug trade.
The Herald (Plymouth),
28 February 2008
A ball
bearing gun and an air weapon
were seized from a property in Camels Head, Plymouth, during a raid
on a suspected brothel. Four people were arrested.
Buxton Advertiser,
28 February 2008
Clive Taylor of New Mills
in Derbyshire terrified a neighbour by pointing an
air rifle at him during an argument in September 2007. Two
air rifles were found at his home. He has been jailed for 24 weeks
after pleading guilty to a charge of harassment.
BBC,
28 February 2008
A man has been arrested
after patients at a doctor's surgery in Birmingham were threatened
with a gun. A man was being question on suspicion of possessing a
firearm with intent to cause fear of violence.
Kent Online,
27 February 2008
Gavin Charters has been jailed
for five years after drugs and an MP5 semi automatic machine gun were found
in his home in Ramsgate, Kent, in December 2008. He had pleaded
guilty to the offence of possessing the firearm.
Digital Spy,
27 February 2008
A TV celebrity and her friend
were threatened at gunpoint while leaving a nightclub in Mayfair,
Central London. She was attacked by four men who tried to highjack her
car.
Birmingham Mail,
27 February 2008
Matthew Oliver and Heather
Rothan have been jailed for repeatedly shooting a 17-year-old girl by taking
potshots at her with an air rifle on a
towpath and then back at home in Wolverhampton. The victim was
found to have 15 entry wounds when taken to hospital with 10 pellets still
embedded in her skin. Oliver was jailed for five years, Rothan for two
years.
Worcester News,
26 February 2008
Armed police were involved in a
five hour stand-off after officers were threatened with a "long-barrel
firearm" in Worcester. The officers had been responding to
reports of criminal damage to a car and house window. Two men were
arrested.
BBC,
26 February 2008
A man has been shot in a
targeted attack in Melling, Merseyside. He was found with
gunshot wounds to his back: his injuries are described as serious.
Tests are being carried out on a gun found in a burnt out car in Croxteth
(BBC, 27 February 2008).
Evening Star,
25 February 2008
A man is in custody after armed
police were called to Norwich city centre following reports of a man seen
with what appeared to be a handgun. A plastic
toy gun was recovered by officers.
Evening Star,
25 February 2008
A total of 43 guns have been
misappropriated in Suffolk during the period between 2003 and 2007.
The figures were obtained by MP David Ruffley.
BBC,
25 February 2008
A pizza delivery man was robbed
of his takings and the meal he was delivering in the Foxhill area of
Bath. He was approached by four men, one of whom was believed
to have been armed with a handgun. Another member of the gang
brandished a knife.
BBC,
24 February 2008
A teenager aged 16 is in
hospital after being targeted by gunmen in Huyton, Merseyside.
He received minor injuries. Police want to speak to two males riding a
small off-road motorbike seen in the area at the time of the shooting.
BBC,
24 February 2008
A 20-year-old man is in a
critical condition in hospital after being shot at a video hire shop in
Washwood Heath, Birmingham. Detectives were trying to establish a
motive.
BBC,
23 February 2008
A masked gunman threatened a
police officer after he had stopped a car for speeding in Partington,
Greater Manchester. As the officer went to speak to the driver two
men, one armed with a silver handgun, came up behind him. The men
shouted abuse and then ran off into a nearby housing estate. They were
not linked to the car which was stopped.
Sunderland Echo,
22 February 2008
Two men were arrested on farm
land near Easington Colliery after a report that the pair had been
seen discharging firearms. Two air rifles
were seized and the men were arrested on suspicion of possession
of a section one firearm without a certificate.
Hull Daily Mail,
22 February 2008 *
A Hull man who tried to
execute his former wife by shooting her with a .22
calibre air rifle because he was unhappy with his divorce
settlement has pleaded guilty to attempted murder. In September 2007
Ricky Walker turned up at his wife's home and began assaulting her. He
went outside and returned with the air rifle and shot in in the forehead
twice. One pellet will be permanently lodged in her skull. He
then shot himself under his chin. Walker has been jailed for 18 years
(Yorkshire Post, 17 March 2008).
Huddersfield Daily
Examiner,
22 February 2008
A sniper with an
airgun is being sought after three
incidents in the Fartown area of Huddersfield. In the first
incident the rear window of a moving car was shattered, then a pedestrian
heard a noise and saw several pellets embedded in a tree, and in the third
incident a pellet broke a window at a house in Sheepridge.
BBC,
22 February 2008
A man has been arrested after
armed police responded to reports of a woman being threatened with an
air rifle in Maryport, Cumbria.
A weapon was recovered but no shots were fired.
This is Derbyshire,
21 February 2008
Two men beat another man and
took him on a terrifying ride at what he believed was "gunpoint" after he
saw one of the men waving his arms in the road whilst he was driving between
Burton and Castle Gresley. He had stopped his car and a
man opened the door and struck him on the back of the head. The victim
finally escaped after he had been forced to drive through the streets of
Swadlincote. His car was taken and has never been recovered.
An 18-year-old who has appeared in court denies kidnapping and robbery.
Mansfield Chad,
21 February 2008
A taxi driver was threatened and
robbed at gunpoint after he dropped off a passenger in Nottingham.
The suspect produced a black handgun and made off with a quantity of money
and two mobile phones after threatening the driver.
Liverpool Daily Post,
21 February 2008 *
Nathan Quigley and Richard
Davies have admitted possessing a prohibited weapon, a submachine gun, which
was thrown from a car in Kirkby. They were sentenced to seven
years and five years (Liverpool Echo, 21 May 2008).
Birmingham Mail,
21 February 2008
Richard Sanders confronted
builders over a boundary dispute in Earlswood, Solihull, while
holding a loaded shotgun. He had admitted possessing five bullets
without a certificate and failing to keep his shotgun in a secure place but
as his trial began he also admitted an offence of affray. He was
sentenced to 12 months in prison suspended for two years, with six months'
supervision, and was banned from possessing any shotgun rifle or pistol for
two years. He was fined £500 and ordered to pay £1000 costs.
Sanders had the shotgun legally and claimed he had been out shooting
squirrels the morning of the incident.
Worcester News,
20 February 2008
Darren Miles was armed with a
ball-bearing gun and a meat cleaver when he
terrified agricultural workers at a Worcester farm in February 2007.
He claimed his girlfriend was the victim of a sex attack and he was looking
for the attacker. He put the gun to the head of one worker.
Miles had a history of weapons possession and alcohol abuse and it emerged
that the rape story had been invented. He was jailed for five years
after pleading guilty to possession of an imitation firearm with intent to
cause fear of violence, affray, and possession of a cleaver.
This is Cheshire,
20 February 2008
A woman had her car stolen at
gunpoint in Barnton. As she was starting her car a man pulled
open the driver's side door and pointed a small handgun at her. He
demanded her handbag and car.
The Star (Sheffield),
20 February 2008
A man has terrorised two
prostitutes at gunpoint in Sheffield's red light district in Neepsend.
One woman managed to escape but the other was subjected to a serious sexual
attack.
Luton Today,
20 February 2008
A man was robbed at gunpoint at
a Luton petrol station where he had arranged to meet another man to
purchase a second-hand car. Two men persuaded the victim to drive to a
lay-by where they threatened him with what appeared to be a handgun.
They stole a large sum of money and the rental car the victim was driving.
Surrey Advertiser,
19 February 2008
Two petrol station workers were
tied up and threatened at gunpoint during a robbery in Alfold.
They were approached by two men, one of whom was carrying a handgun.
The robbers stole a quantity of cash before driving off in a vehicle parked
nearby.
Liverpool Echo,
19 February 2008 *
The body of a man with gunshot
wounds in his legs was found in a field in Croxteth, Liverpool.
Police believe he may have gone to meet his killer and bled to death after
he'd been shot (Liverpool Echo, 20 February 2008). Three men
and a teenage woman have been arrested, one of the men on suspicion of
murder, the three others on suspicion of possessing a firearm (BBC 7 March
2008).
The Gazette
(Blackpool),
19 February 2008
Vandals have shot out the
floodlights at the football ground of Blackpool Mechanics FC in South
Shore. It has been assumed that the damage was done by someone
with an airgun.
This is Lancashire,
18 February 2008
A "13-year-old" burglar is being
hunted by police after striking six times in Bacup and Whitworth
in December. Police have released an image of the youth created by
Evofit. The offender carries a ball-bearing
gun.
Daily Mirror,
18 February 2008
Three soldiers from the Argyll
and Sutherland Highlanders have been arrested on suspicion of stealing
machine guns, grenades and ammunition from their base and selling them to
criminal gangs in Scotland. The arrests were made when police raided
their barracks in Canterbury, Kent.
Northern Echo,
16 February 2008
A would-be robber hit a customer
over the head with a gun before pointing the barrel at the owner of a
newsagents in Hartlepool. One of her sons rushed into the shop
and the assailant fled empty handed. Police later arrested a man
suspected to be the getaway driver while the robber was still being hunted.
Police also recovered an imitation gun.
Lincolnshire Echo,
16 February 2008
Jay Henderson pointed an
air rifle at a man during a burglary at a
home in Lincoln in June 2007. He carried out the offence while
on bail for another armed burglary in Lincoln following which the air rifle
belonging to the occupant of the flat was found to be missing.
Henderson admitted two charges of aggravated burglary and has been sent to a
mental hospital for an indefinite period.
Evening Courier
(Halifax),
16 February 2008
An 18-year-old who bragged to
this aunt that he would shoot his flatmate was seized by armed police in the
centre of Hebden Bridge after his aunt saw him carrying an
airgun and phoned his stepmother.
Joseph Hartley said he found the weapon in a skip and only intended to use
it to shoot tin cans. He pleaded guilty to carrying the firearm and
was given a 12-month community order, had the gun destroyed and was ordered
to pay £60 costs.
Bolton News,
16 February 2008 *
Armed police raided a house
after a man was seen walking in Breightmet with a handgun tucked into
his trousers. An air pistol was
found which police believe was the weapon the man was carrying. Thomas
Neary was
arrested and has pleaded guilty to possession of an imitation firearm with
intent to cause fear (This is Lancashire, 28 February 2008). He
has been given a four-month prison sentence, suspended for 12 months and
must undergo 12 months supervision from probation officers (Bolton News,
19 March 2008).
BBC,
16 February 2008 *
A number of shots were fired a
restaurant in the centre of Birmingham. The incident apparently
happened in a private room. No-one was hurt in the shooting which
police said was not random. A man has been charged with possessing a
firearm with intent to cause unlawful violence (BBC, 7 April 2008).
Hartlepool Mail,
14 February 2008
A man was found dead with a
gunshot wound at his home in Trimdon, County Durham. Police
were not treating his death as suspicious.
Islington Gazette,
14 February 2008
A gunman is believed to have
fired his weapon towards the entrance of a nightclub in Finsbury.
No-one was injured. Bullet casings were found in the street and police
have released CCTV images of a man wanted in connection with the incident.
BBC,
14 February 2008
A man threatened to shoot staff
at a bank in Leatherhead, Surrey. No weapon was seen, but staff
handed over a large sum of cash. Surrey Police are investigating
possible links with similar incidents in Ashford, Shepperton and Egham.
Two other men may have been involved in the robbery.
Sunderland Echo,
13 February 2008
A woman was left shaken after a
robber held her up with what police believe was a handgun in a street in
Ryhope. The woman was forced to hand over her bag. It
contained a phone and personal belongings.
News Shopper,
13 February 2008
A long-barrelled shotgun and a
First World War pistol are among items handed in to police in Bromley
during a firearms amnesty. In addition, 28
imitation guns have been handed in during the first two weeks of
the campaign.
The Star (Sheffield),
12 February 2008
Three teenagers aged 16, 15 and
13 have been arrested after a spate of catapult and
airgun attacks which have caused a thousand pounds of damage
in the village of Platts Common near Barnsley. The arrests were
part of Operation Maximum Impact. See also Incidents Involving Animals
below
The News (Portsmouth),
12 February 2008
Police arrested two men on
suspicion of possessing a firearm after finding a weapon inside a house in
Hayling Island. They had gone to the house to investigate an
allegation of someone making threats to kill.
Evening Courier
(Halifax),
12 February 2008
Three masked men robbed takeaway
staff at gunpoint in Rastrick, West Yorkshire. They threatened
them before fleeing on foot with cash from the till.
Daily Mail,
12 February 2008
Armed police held a man at
gunpoint when they mistook his MP3 player for a pistol. He was
arrested and put in a police cell. He was listening to music on his
way home from work in Stoke-on-Trent. The police had received a
report from a member of the public who had seen a man appear to pull a
handgun from a jacket pocket.
Yorkshire Evening Post,
11 February 2008 *
A man has appeared in court
after police found illegal weaponry and £18,000 in his car after a police
chase in November 2007. When his home in Norwood near Harrogate
was searched police found a .22 air rifle
and ammunition, an unsecured shotgun, two CS gas cannisters, a flick knife
and a knuckle duster. Simon Phillips has admitted purchase of an
uncertificated air rifle, possession of live ammunition, failure to comply
with the terms of a shotgun certificate, possession of an offensive weapon
and having a weapon for discharge of noxious substances. He has been
jailed for six months (Yorkshire Post, 29 March 2008).
The Star (Sheffield),
11 February 2008
A shop worker and a delivery
driver were held at gunpoint by a gang of armed robbers who burst into a
store in Eckington demanding cash. A handgun was pointed at the
woman shop worker. The robbers were also armed with baseball bats.
The Press (York),
11 February 2008
Three shotguns and 24 cartridges
and two BB guns are among a haul of
weapons handed in to police as part of an amnesty in York and
Selby aimed at getting knives and guns off the street. It runs
until the end of February.
News & Star, 11 February 2008
Police stopped a car in traffic
in Carlisle and arrested four teenagers on suspicion of possessing
airguns. The suspects were acting after reports than an air rifle
barrel had been spotted pointing out of a car in Dalston, near the
city. Two air rifles were seized
by police.
Evening Star (Suffolk),
11 February 2008
An airgun pellet was fired at a
bus and shattered a window where a family were sitting. The incident
happened at Kesgrave. A 14-year-old boy was arrested on
suspicion of causing actual bodily harm and criminal damage. An
air rifle was seized.
Evening Gazette
(Middlesbrough), 11 February 2008 *
A man was to appear in court
charged with two separate gunpoint raids. In the first a man walking
along a street in the Grove Hill area of Middlesbrough was allegedly
threatened by a man with a handgun who demanded cash. The attacker got
away with less than £15. Two days later a man was walking in Linthorpe
had bank cards and a mobile phone taken at gunpoint in Linthorpe.
He has denied the charges (Evening Gazette (Middlesbrough), 4 April
2008)
BBC, 11 February 2008
Three men armed with a handgun
threatened staff and a customer at a jeweller's shop in Caterham,
Surrey. The robbers escaped with jewellery grabbed from cabinets.
The escape vehicle and gun were later found by police at Gravelly Hill.
BBC, 11 February 2008
A 16-year-old boy, one of two
people injured at a shooting at a betting shop in Withington,
Manchester, in January 2007 (see
Incidents) has died in hospital.
East Anglian Daily Times,
10 February 2008
A veterinary practice in
Framlingham, Suffolk, has had hundreds of pounds worth of drugs and
equipment stolen following a break-in. Among the items stolen was a
handgun used to put down animals.
Telegraph, 9 February 2008
Armed police were called to the
village of Churchdown near Gloucester by a member of the public who
reported seeing three youths with a firearm. The gun was found to be a
water pistol. One 17-year-old was
advised by officers in relation to his future conduct and a second
17-year-old was spoken to. A police spokesman issued another warning
about the impossibility of being able to distinguish between real and
replica guns and advised youngsters not to mess around with replica or toy
guns in public.
BBC, 9 February 2008
Thieves who hijacked and then
crashed a beer lorry in Southall, west London, may have been armed
with a gun according to an eye witness.
Kent Online,
7 February 2008
A man brandishing a gun entered
a bank in New Ash Green, near Gravesend, and demanded cash.
Staff handed over an undisclosed amount of money from the tills.
Evening Chronicle
(Newcastle),
7 February 2008
A man is recovering in hospital
after being shot in the stomach in his backyard in Philadelphia,
Houghton-le-Spring. It is believed he was shot with an
air rifle. A man has been arrested
in connection with the shooting.
Daily Mail,
7 February 2008
A bank manager was kidnapped at
gunpoint as a prank for his 40th birthday. The kidnap took place at a
petrol station with the knowledge of the staff there. Staff at the
bank in Penzance, Cornwall, also cooperated in the plan for the mock
kidnapping which involved replica guns.
A spokesman for Devon & Cornwall Police said they had no record of the
incident but "in general we would discourage this sort of thing. It is
not a good idea to go around in public with replica or toy guns and
balaclavas." What he should also have added was that it is actually an
offence to have a replica gun in a public place.
The Citizen (Preston),
7 February 2008 *
Three people pleaded guilty to
serious firearms offences at Preston Crown Court. Ivan Hue, Anthony
Davis and Michelle Collins all pleaded guilty to jointly possessing a loaded
Baikal 9mm handgun and silencer. Another woman, Tamara Gornall had
been stopped by police in August 2007 in the Gamull area of Preston
and was found to be in possession of the gun (see
Incidents). She was later arrested
and has since pleaded guilty to possessing the firearm. Collins has
been given a 15 months jail term (Lancashire Evening Post, 12 April
2008), Hue has been sentenced to five years in prison (97.4 rockfm,
18 April 2008) and Gornall to 12 months in prison (The Citizen, 28
April 2008). Davis was given a five year sentence (Citizen
(Preston), 23 May 2008).
Telegraph & Argus
(Bradford),
6 February 2008
A man has been arrested on
firearms charges following a weapons seizure in Mirfield, West
Yorkshire. Fourteen handguns, an amount of ammunition, two crossbows
and an air rifle were recovered from an
address following reports of a man brandishing a handgun.
Liverpool Echo,
6 February 2008 *
A woman was arrested on
suspicion of being in possession of a gun in a public place after reports
that she had been seen with a handgun near a medical centre in Stockton
Heath, Warrington. The weapon is thought to have been an
airgun. Emma Kerr is now awaiting
sentence after being refused bail (Warrington Guardian, 8 June 2008).
Kent Online,
6 February 2008
A man entered a shop in
Chatham and threatened a cashier with what appeared to be a gun.
He left after being handed a quantity of cash.
The Citizen
(Gloucestershire), 6 February 2008
Two cousins were assaulted by a
gang in the centre of Gloucester. One aged 17, alleges that a
car pulled up and fired at him with an air rifle
which left a hole in his coat. The other teenager, aged 16, says the
gang was assaulted with baseball bats, bottles and a golf club.
Birmingham Mail,
6 February 2008
A court has been told how a
mother on her way to pick up her children from school was shot in the head
by a man taking pot-shots with an air rifle.
Part of a pellet lodged in her head and she had to have it removed by
surgery. A man has denied charges of wounding and possessing an air
rifle. The incident occurred in Handsworth in March 2007.
The defendant claimed he had been showing the air rifle to a friend in his
flat when he accidentally activated the trigger. The prosecution claim
that three shots were fired. The case continues.
Avon & Somerset
Constabulary,
6 February 2008
A man was arrested in
Bridgwater after police received reports that a man was being threatened
with a handgun. Armed officer who arrested the man seized an
imitation firearm.
Asian News,
6 February 2008
Four people have been charged
with firearms offences following police raids in Greater Manchester.
Three guns were seized. A man and a woman from Bury have been charged
with possessing a firearm and ammunition, a man from Flixton was
charged with two counts of possessing a firearm and two of possessing
ammunition and the fourth man from Old Trafford was charged with
possessing a firearm, a firearm component and ammunition.
The Argus (Brighton),
6 February 2008
David Clarke threatened staff
with a cigarette lighter in the shape of a metal gun at a job centre in
Brighton in July 2007. A policewoman and a woman Police Community
Support Officer tackled the man and took the weapon from him. Clarke
admitted possession of an imitation firearm
and will be sentenced later this month.
The Star (Sheffield),
5 February 2008
Armed police were called to
Conisbrough after three boys were spotted by a member of the public with
a silver gun with a 'laser pointer'. The weapon was found dumped in a
nearby garden and identified as a ball-bearing gun.
The youths, aged between 11 and 13, were taken home and police advised their
parents about carrying an imitation weapon in the street.
BBC, 5 February 2008
An entire gun cabinet has been
stolen from a house in Kingerby in Lincolnshire. The cabinet
contained two double barrel shotguns, a single barrel shotgun and
cartridges. An amount of cash was also taken.
BBC,
5 February 2008
Police were called to three
separate shootings across Manchester within the space of a few hours.
No one was hurt in the incidents which happened in Moss Side,
Burnage and Gorton. The incidents are not believed to be
linked.
Liverpool Echo,
4 February 2008
A gunman held up two travel
agents in St Helens. He was armed with a handgun and escaped
with a sizeable amount of cash.
Hartlepool Mail,
4 February 2008
A trial is taking place of four
men charged with being involved in a conspiracy to kidnap another man in
early 2004 and conspiracy to blackmail the victim's brother of £25,000.
The gang had kidnapped the victim at gunpoint at Seaton Carew, County
Durham.
The Gazette
(Preston),
4 February 2008
Two shots were discharged in a
nightclub in the centre of Preston. Nobody is believed to have
been hurt.
The Gazette
(Blackpool),
4 February 2008
A security guard from North
Shore has been accused of possessing two stun guns. The guns are
prohibited weapons.
Derbyshire Times,
1 February 2008
A gang of youths using an
air rifle smashed a window of a factory in
Renishaw. Police were called by members of the local Safer
Neighbourhood Team.
Bucks Free Press,
1 February 2008
A man allegedly held his
ex-partner and her daughters at gunpoint for over an hour at their home in
Chesham. A man was later arrested while he was driving through
the town.
SCOTLAND
BBC,
29 February 2008
Allan Rodger was part of a
gang which planned to rob a security van outside a bank in Kilmarnock
in May 2006 (see Incidents).
A security guard was shot during the attempted robbery and still has a
bullet lodged in his pelvic bone. Rodger has admitted attempted
robbery and will be sentenced in March.
BBC,
27 February 2008
David Schoular was drunk when he
aimed an imitation gun at a 15-year-old
as he walked past shops in Newmains, North Lanarkshire, in November
2007. The boy believed he was going to be shot. Schoular
admitted having in his possession a firearm or an imitation firearm with
intent to cause his victim to believe violence would be used against him.
He has been jailed for two years.
Kirkintilloch Herald,
26 February 2008
A 16-year-old boy was shot in
the forehead in an airgun attack on open
ground in Hillhead, Kirkintilloch. He was taken to hospital
where doctors removed the pellet which was embedded just above his eye.
Banffshire Journal,
26 February 2008
Darren Barley has admitted
discharging an air rifle across a road
and hitting a streetlight in King Edward, Aberdeenshire. He also pleaded
guilty to a further two separate charges of having a loaded weapon without
lawful authority or reasonable excuse and being drunk in possession of a
firearm. He was given a £300 fine, £100 for each offence.
ic Renfrewshire,
25 February 2008
Robert Peacock has pleaded
guilty to unlawful possession of a sawn-off bolt action
air rifle and been jailed for six months.
He claimed he had bought the firearm from local youths "on the black
market". The gun was found at his home in Barrhead in April
2007. After being tested the gun was found to fall within the terms of
the Firearms Act.
ic Renfrewshire,
21 February 2008
James Campbell, 20, fired a shot
from an air rifle at a shopkeeper whilst attempting to rob a store in Paisley in September 2007. He
targeted the store because he "didn't like black people or Asians".
The shopkeeper managed to activate the raid alarm and then threw a bottle of
wine at Campbell. Campbell was sent to jail for six year and four
months.
Daily Record,
21 February 2008
Stephen Crawford, 19, and Daniel
McBeth, 17, were held during a police crackdown on car crime on Orkney.
They stole a car, and McBeth had fired a loaded
airgun he found in the car. McBeth was locked up for seven
months after admitting a driving offence and possessing the air pistol.
Daily Record,
19 February 2008
Edward Humphrey fired an
air rifle from the window of a flat in
Renfrew and was photographed by a worker in an office opposite. He
has been jailed for 18 months.
ic Renfrewshire,
18 February 2008 *
Gary Convery tried to murder a
man in a pub shooting in Paisley in July 2007. The shooting
occurred just minutes after a brawl in the pub. No-one was hit when
Convery fired the handgun. He has admitted trying to kill the man by
repeatedly pointed a handgun at him, discharging the weapon and attempting
to fire it, as well as a firearms charge. Convery has been given a
nine year sentence (BBC, 7 March 2008).
Greenock Telegraph,
18 February 2008
A man was gunned down in a
street in Larkfield. The victim was rushed to hospital where
his condition was described as stable.
Evening Times,
18 February 2008
Selim Manjani has been jailed
for eight years for shooting a man in the neck in a street in Glasgow
in April 2007 (see Incidents).
He admitted assaulting his victim to his severe injury and to the danger of
his life by firing a pistol. He also admitted illegally possessing the
weapon and ammunition. The judge recommended that Manjani, an
Albanian, be deported.
Evening News
(Edinburgh),
14 February 2008 *
A man was attacked with a stun
gun as he walked home in Broughton, Edinburgh. He was also
kicked in the attack and suffered a fractured eye socket and blurred vision.
Steven Burns, who shot the banned weapon, was out on bail at the time of the
attack. He has been convicted of assaulting his victim to his severe
injury and permanent disfigurement and impairment in June 2007. Burns
has been jailed for five years (Scotsman, 6 March 2008).
Scotsman, 14
February 2008
A team, including a councillor
who had come to speak to community workers about drugs and violence in the
area, were taking a tour of a housing estate in Airdrie, Lanarkshire,
when they came under fire from teenagers shooting
air rifles. Police were analysing pellets in a bid to track
down who fired the shots.
ic Renfrewshire,
13 February 2008
Police are hunting for a man who
pistol-whipped a South African man in a racist attack in Paisley.
The victim was struck with the butt of a silver handgun as he walked along a
street. Racist insults were hurled at him.
Daily Record, 12
February 2008
A 16-year-old has been charged
with petrol bomb attacks and shooting children with an
air rifle. He is accused of shooting
and wounding boys aged 13, 14 and 15 on a footpath in Kilwinning,
Ayrshire. He also faces charges of illegally possessing an air rifle
as well as a charge relating to the petrol bombs.
Evening News,
7 February 2008
Darren Brakes has been jailed
for two months after admitting culpably and recklessly discharging a
BB gun in Edinburgh in August 2007.
He claimed he was messing about with the gun in a flat when the shot was
fired. A pellet flew out of the window and struck a man as he stood in
the street. Although he was not injured the victim reported the
incident to the police.
Daily Record,
7 February 2008
Shaun Trotter repeatedly fired
pellets from an air pistol at four
teenagers in a swing park in Cumbernauld in May 2006 after one them
"mooned" at him. None of the shots hit the boys. He admitted a
firearms offence and assaulting the boys and has been given a one year jail
sentence.
BBC,
5 February 2008
Two men are standing trial
accused of forcing a prostitute to commit sex acts on them at gunpoint.
The crime took place in Aberdeen in September 2007. The accused
men deny sexually assaulting the woman, presenting a gun at her and placing
her in a state of fear of alarm. One of them also denies a charge of
robbing the woman at gunpoint.
WALES
South Wales Evening Post,
28 February 2008
A villager in Seven Sisters
in the Dulais Valley has reported that air rifles
have regularly been fired at his property. He believed the attacks are
part of an anti-English campaign.
South Wales Echo,
26 February 2008
A man arrested at an apartment
in Cardiff in April 2007 has denied being in possession of a BBN
Bruni pistol, loaded with live ammunition, and two bulleted cartridges,
although he has pleaded guilty to being the owner of a quantity of cannabis
bush seized at the same time. The man has been given an indeterminate
sentence (see May 2008 Incidents).
Rhondda Leader,
21 February 2008
A man seen walking down a street
in Tonypandy waving a gun admitted displaying an
imitation gun and has been sentenced to four months in jail.
Steven Jones had made the gun out of a medical crutch handle and a silver
torch.
Neath Guardian,
21 February 2008
Police who mistook a whisky
bottle for a gun shot a man outside his home in Neath with a stun
gun. The incident followed an attack by Ieuan Richards on a van with a
bayonet in a dispute over street parking. He had 93 previous offences
recorded against him and 12 convictions, including some for firearms
possession. He admitted possession of a bladed article and criminal
damage. Sentencing was adjourned.
BBC,
13 February 2008
Craig Platt from Kinmel Bay,
Conwy, pointed a loaded air rifle at his
wife a few days after learning of her child's paternity when he appeared on
ITV's The Jeremy Kyle Show. He admitted possessing a firearm with
intent to cause fear of violence and was given an indeterminate sentence for
public protection.
BBC,
4 February 2008
Two men have been arrested after
armed police were called to Llangollen, Denbighshire, where a woman
thought she saw a man go into a bar carrying a gun. One was later
charged with possession of an imitation firearm, public order offences and
theft offences. An 18-year-old was charged with theft. The
weapon has been found and is believed to be a ball
bearing gun.
South Wales Echo,
2 February 2008
A Brocock ME38 revolver which
uses compressed air to fire pellets and is now a banned firearm was found by
police during Operation Maximum Impact, a crime crackdown in Cardiff.
The pistol was found during a raid on a house in Llanrumney during
which a quantity of cannabis was confiscated. Two people were arrested
on suspicion of possessing cannabis and a controlled firearm.
INCIDENTS INVOLVING ANIMALS
Welwyn & Hatfield Times, 27 February 2008
The Potters Bar Edition
of the paper revealed an attack on a cat which is now recovering
after being shot three times with an air rifle.
Kent News, 26 February 2008
The RSPCA is appealing for
information after a cat was shot with an air rifle
in Westerham. A pellet was removed from close to his spinal
cord.
Forfar Dispatch, 26 February 2008
A family cat has been seriously
wounded by an airgun pellet in Letham, Angus. Vets discovered
that she was the victim of an air rifle
attack and that the pellet had penetrated through into her neck.
News & Star, 23 February 2008
A duck has managed to survive
despite being shot three times with an airgun.
The mallard drake was found by a member of the public in Maryport,
Cumbria. An RSPCA inspector said that the animal has suffered immensely
because "someone callously decided to use him as target practice".
This is Lancashire,
22 February 2008
A cat was recovering in surgery
after an operation after being discovered in the back garden of a house in
Halliwell. X-rays showed that there was an
airgun pellet in the left thigh bone which
had shattered. The pellet was removed and the leg pinned.
Sunderland Echo,
16 February 2008
An injured cat was found by a
dog walker on a football field in South Hylton. The cat had
been shot in the head with an airgun and
left for dead. Vets removed the pellet and the cat is now in a stable
condition.
Personal Communication,
15 February 2008
A correspondent in Rushden,
Northamptonshire, has told us about an airgun
attack which has left her cat with a pellet embedded in her leg (click
here)
BBC,
13 February 2008
A swan which had been shot in
the eye with an airgun has been rescued
from a lake near Weston-super-Mare, Somerset. The bird is being
cared for at a wildlife sanctuary.
BBC,
13 February 2008
A male swan which had been shot
dead with an air rifle was found on the
canal bank in Tipton, West Midlands. It had suffered broken
bones and internal bleeding in the attack.
The Star (Sheffield),
12 February 2008
One of three teenagers arrested
after a spate of catapult and airgun attacks in Platts Common, South
Yorkshire (see above) had two dead birds in his pocket. The robin and
goldcrest had been shot with an air rifle. The youth said he
was going to feed them to his ferret.
Kent News,
12 February 2008
A man has pleaded guilty to
shooting a seagull with a pellet gun
near his home in Margate in August 2007. Christopher
Fraser-Nash was fined £100 and ordered to pay £600 in court costs as well as
forfeiting the gun and ammunition.
Manchester Evening News,
11 February 2008
A cat has been scarred for life
after he was nearly killed in an air rifle
attack in Wigan. A pellet had narrowly missed his brain and had
brushed past his eye before lodging in his right shoulder. It has been
decided not to remove the pellet because surgery would be too dangerous.
BBC,
4 February 2008 *
A Rottweiler was shot dead
by armed police officers after it attacked its owners in Maidstone,
Kent.
