MARCH 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
This is Hampshire, 31 March 2008
A taxi driver was robbed of
his takings at gunpoint when he dropped off two passengers in
Whiteley. The passengers had been picked up outside a
Portsmouth nightclub.
Evening Telegraph (Derby), 31 March 2008 *
A 15-year-old boy was shot
in the face with an airgun while
walking home from school in Kilburn, Derbyshire. A boy of
the same age has been arrested and bailed.
Burnley Express, 31 March 2008
A firearm was set off in an
incident in Burnley smashing a house window. No-one was
hurt in the incident.
Birmingham Mail, 31 March 2008 *
A schoolboy armed with an
air pistol tried to rob another
teenager on a bus between Dudley and Sedgley. The
incident was recorded on CCTV and the boy was picked up by police at
Wolverhampton bus station. The 16-year-old, who was on licence
from prison at the time, has been given a 22-month detention and
training order. He admitted attempted robbery and two charges of
possessing an imitation firearm.
BBC,
31 March 2008 *
A man will appear in court
after an attempted armed robbery at a garage in Northampton. He has
been charged with attempted robbery and possession of an
imitation firearm. He has been
jailed for three-and-a-half years (see
July 2008 Incidents).
BBC, 31 March 2008
A gun may have been
discharged after a number of people returned to the scene of a fight
next to a community club in Skelmersdale, Lancashire.
BBC,
29 March 2008
Two men were found with
gunshot wounds at a property in Aston, West Midlands. Their
injuries are not thought to be life-threatening. Two men have been
arrested on suspicion of attempted murder.
Surrey Advertiser,
28 March 2008
Armed robbers threatened
staff at a bookmakers in Ewell before stealing more than £300.
The two men were armed with handguns. Police are investigating
possible links with an armed robbery in Thames Ditton and an
attempted robbery in Dorking earlier in the month (see below).
Crawley Observer,
28 March 2008
Zak Owen, a former police
officer has been convicted of theft, false imprisonment and possession
of a firearm and has been jailed for seven years. Owen of
Chatham, Kent, was arrested in August 2007.
Cambridge News,
28 March 2008
Graham Peters has been told
by magistrates that he could expect to face a long jail sentence after
he admitted possessing a sawn-off shotgun without a licence.
Peters kept the gun in his truck before retiring as a lorry driver but
then stashed it underneath the bed of his mobile home in Wilburton,
Cambridgeshire.
BBC,
28 March 2008
A man has been charged in
connection with a series of armed robberies carried out on bookmakers
across the South East during the last two years. The man from
Borehamwood, Hertfordshire, faces 22 counts of armed robbery and 22
counts of possession of a firearm.
West Sussex County Times, 27
March 2008
A man was arrested and an
imitation firearm recovered after
police officers boarded and searched a train at East Grinstead
railway station. A member of the public had raised the alarm after
a passenger was spotted with a handgun. The suspect is a
15-year-old boy (BBC, 27 March 2008).
Mirror,
27 March 2008
A fireman was hit in the
back with a pellet from an airgun
fired in an estate in Hartlepool.
Liverpool Echo,
27 March 2008
Andrew Tyrer of Childwall,
Liverpool, has pleaded guilty to two counts of possessing a prohibited
firearm and a further charge of having ammunition without a licence.
He also admitted drugs charges. He was arrested in November 2007
following a targeted gun crime day when officers found two self-loading
pistols.
Bolton News,
27 March 2008
Police discovered a fully
loaded short barrel 9mm semi-automatic Glock handgun when they went to a
pub in the centre of Manchester. Four men, one aged 18,
were arrested on suspicion of possession of a firearm with intent to
cause fear of violence.
Birmingham Mail,
27 March 2008
A teenager has been shot in
the leg with an air rifle. The
attack took place near a brook in Wombourne, Staffordshire.
The victim suffered minor injuries to his calf.
BBC,
27 March 2008
Two men hijacked and robbed
a post office van driver just after he had made a delivery in Scotter,
Lincolnshire. One of the men was possibly holding a gun. The
driver managed to escape as the robbers tried to open cash boxes in
nearby woods.
Wimbledon Guardian,
26 March 2008
A married couple who were
held at gunpoint by two men who ransacked their home in Banstead,
Surrey, in January 2008 will speak about the incident on BBC's
Crimewatch. The man was restrained with handcuffs and thumbcuffs
were used on his wife. The burglars stole many valuable
possessions.
Newham Recorder,
26 March 2008
Perry Nathaniel has been
given a life sentence after a teenager was left with a bullet lodged in
his brain. He shot his victim in the head at point blank range in
a row over a car. The incident took place in Canning Town,
east London, in July 2006. Nathaniel had denied attempted murder.
Both he and Robert Dorey, the driver who took him to the scene, were
ordered to serve a minimum of 16 years. The victim, Amadou
Drammeh, was sentenced to 45 days for contempt because he refused to
complete his evidence against the defendants.
MK News,
26 March 2008
A gunman fired his weapon
outside a nightclub in Milton Keynes. Earlier that night a
group of 10 to 12 men, including the gang member who discharged the
firearm, were refused entry to the club.
Evening Leader (Chester),
26 March 2008 *
A man has been arrested in
Carlisle on suspicion of possessing a firearm. Armed
response officers entered a property in the city and recovered a weapon.
He has been sentenced to three years in prison (see
June 2008 Incidents).
BBC,
26 March 2008
A man who failed to report
back to prison was arrested when a car was pulled over in Sunderland.
An electrical stun gun and other items were found. Another man was
arrested on suspicion of possessing dangerous weapons.
BBC,
26 March 2008
A man is on trial accused of
conspiracy to murder a man who was shot outside his home in
Dormanstown, near Redcar in Teesside, in September 1996. He
had been extradited from Spain to face trial. Four men have
previously been convicted in the case, two with murder.
This is Hampshire,
25 March 2008
A gunman walked into a store
in Portsmouth and made off with £11,000. The forced members
of staff into a room at the rear of the shop and, after repeatedly
punching one man, forced him to open the safe whilst pointing the gun at
him.
Redditch Advertiser,
25 March 2008
A teenager was grabbed
around the throat and threatened with what appeared to be an
airgun as he was leaving a park in
Church Hill. He was approached by a male who had been with
another group of males and a girl who ordered him to hand over his
mobile phone. The phone was recovered nearby.
Sheffield Telegraph,
25 March 2008
Samuel Sorsby, 20, turned up
outside the High Green home of a 14-year-old girl he had dated
for just a week or two armed with an air rifle
and a sword. He was drunk and threatened to slit her throat and
burn her house down. He was tackled by neighbours. He
pleaded guilty to one count of possession of a firearm with intent to
cause fear of violence. He was given a 12-month sentence in a
young offenders' institute.
Liverpool Echo,
25 March 2008
Armed police sealed off a
road in Kirkdale, Liverpool, after reports that four teenagers
who were setting off fire hydrants might have a gun. Four suspects
were arrested as they came out of a house and taken away for
questioning. Police found a ball bearing
gun, a machete and an extendable baton in the house.
BBC,
25 March 2008
Two men with a handgun robbed a
bookmakers in Kitts Green, Birmingham. They forced the store
manager to open the safe and stole an undisclosed amount of money.
Weston & Somerset Mercury,
24 March 2008
A four-year-old's
toy gun sparked a major armed police
operation in Worle, Somerset. The police were alerted by a
member of the public who spotted what was thought to be a handgun on the
parcel shelf of a car. The police say that this is exactly the type of
problem caused by fake guns and that anyone who has a toy gun is putting
themselves at serious risk of being shot by police because they are almost
impossible to distinguish fro real guns.
BBC,
23 March 2008
An 18-year-old was shot while he
was waiting at a bus stop with a friend in Wandsworth, south London.
The victim was shot in the shoulder and remains in hospital in a comfortable
condition.
Evening Star,
22 March 2008
A 19-year-old man was arrested
for firing an airgun at a neighbour's
window in Ipswich. Two shots were fired at a kitchen window.
No-one was hurt.
BBC,
22 March 2008
A police sergeant from
Downham Market, Norfolk, has pleaded not guilty to charges of
harassment, possessing a knife in a public place and entered no plea to
further charges including possession of firearm ammunition without a
certificate.
BBC,
22 March 2008
Two people, a woman and a man,
were injured when two masked gunmen fired shots into a pub in Salford.
Both victims were taken to hospital, the woman with a gunshot wound to her
ankle and the man with an injury to his thigh. Their injuries are not
believed to be life-threatening. The police have obtained a temporary
closure order on the pub (BBC, 20 May 2008).
BBC,
22 March 2008
A man thought to be wearing a
burka threatened a security driver outside a supermarket in Birmingham
with what was believed to be a firearm wrapped in a black plastic bag.
The driver managed to get back into his van and shut the sliding door
trapping the weapon in the door for a few seconds. A second robbery at
a jewellers in Smethwick, where an armed robber in a burka was joined by
four other men may be linked to the earlier incident.
BBC,
22 March 2008
A teenager has been shot during
an incident in a flat in Baguley, Manchester. The victim was
due to undergo surgery.
BBC,
22 March 2008
Police are investigating the
death a man who was shot in the head in Blyth, Northumberland.
He was found above a takeaway along with a seriously injured woman.
Police recovered a firearm from the scene which they think was involved in
the killing. Two men have been arrested and bailed, a third remains in
custody. A man has now been charged with murder. The injured
woman remains in a critical condition (BBC, 24 March 2008).
Watford Observer,
21 March 2008
Police are asking for help in
catching the perpetrator of an air pistol
incident in Watford which occurred earlier in the month. A
member of the public was threatened with the gun, and police suspect that
the man responsible may have been involved in other incidents that day.
The gun was later recovered.
Huddersfield Daily
Examiner,
21 March 2008
Two men have been charged with
possessing a shotgun without holding a licence in Huddersfield in
March 2007. One of the men, aged 19, is also charged with drug
offences and possessing a weapon which would be likely to discharge liquid
gas and to receiving a car knowing or believing it to be stolen. The
case against the two men was adjourned until April.
Shropshire Star,
20 March 2008
A man has been charged with
possessing an air rifle in public after
a drinker in a pub in Ironbridge was shot in the head. The shot
was fired from a passing car.
Ormskirk Advertiser,
20 March 2008
A woman in Lydiate,
Ormskirk, has described how a pellet was fired from an
air rifle or BB
gun at her living room window shattering the glass.
Hackney Gazette,
20 March 2008
A teenager was left fighting for
his life after being shot in the face in a drive-by shooting in Hackney,
east London. The 18-year-old was driving with his girlfriend when a
vehicle pulled alongside their car and shots were fired at point-blank
range. The victim's car swerved and crashed into a lamppost. A
picture of the two men suspected of the attack has been published. The
attack has left the victim severely disabled, with limited speech, and
partly paralysed down his left side (Hackney Gazette, 9 May 2008).
Eastern Daily Press,
20 March 2008
Three teenage robbers, one aged
14 and two aged 15, who used ball bearing guns
and a knife to terrorise holidaymakers in attacks in Southwold,
Suffolk, have been sentenced for robbery, attempted robbery and conspiracy
to rob after three attacks in August 2007. The three stole a digital
camera from a man and his son and had attempted to rob another man walking
alone along the promenade. One 15-year-old was given a 12 month
referral order and the other avoided custody only because he was 14 when he
committed the offence. The 14-year-old was also given a 12 month
referral order.
The Citizen
(Blackburn),
20 March 2008
David Rowlands has pleaded
guilty to possessing an imitation firearm with intent to cause fear of
violence. He had pointed a gun at a police officer's face who tackled
him after Rowlands had chased children with the weapon near a supermarket in
Darwen in February 2007 (see
Incidents). The gun was a
plastic ball-bearing gun, although the
officer was not aware of this until he grabbed Rowlands' hand. When
his holdall was search another imitation ball bearing type pump action
shotgun was found. PC Alan Hurst has been praised by the judge, his
boss and a councillor for his courage.
Wigan Today,
19 March 2008
A steward of a club in Platt
Bridge was brutally assaulted by a gunman who dragged him back to work
and forced him to open up the club and hand over the takings. But the
gunman fled empty-handed after another man rushed into the club and wrestled
the attacker to the ground. The gun was levelled and fired in his
direction.
Rye & Battle Observer,
19 March 2008
A man died after a firearms
incident at a house in Eastbourne, Sussex. The police are not
treating incident as suspicious.
Birmingham Mail,
19 March 2008
Two police officers, PCs Garry
Barton and Martin Bradley, were presented with Chief Constable's
Commendations for their heroic actions in tackling an armed man in June
2007. They were on patrol in Kitts Green when they saw a man
aiming what later turned out to be a ball-bearing
gun at a house. They gave chase and arrested the man.
BBC,
19 March 2008
Staff at a Sunderland
post office were threatened with a handgun when three men demanded
money. The gun was not discharged but the men fled with a large
sum of money.
Kent Online,
18 March 2008
A driver who was driving along a
street in Yalding had a large handgun pointed in his face by the
driver of another vehicle, thought to be aged around 18. The man had
pulled over to let the other car.
ic South London,
18 March 2008
A 14-year-old schoolboy has
confessed to shooting a man in the back but claims he panicked in fear for
his life. He believed he had been threatened by the victim, whom the
boy and his friends had robbed of his mobile phone a few months earlier.
The man was shot in Peckham in October 2007. The boy has denied
being given the gun by a 17-year-old and both teenagers deny attempted
murder, wounding with intent and possession of a firearm with intent to
endanger life. The trial continues.
BBC,
18 March 2008
Two shotguns and more than 100
cartridges have been stolen from a house in Meols, Wirral. Both
firearms had been lawfully held in a secure cabinet in the premises.
BBC,
18 March 2008
A coroner has ruled that Garry
Weddell unlawfully killed his wife and her mother, before taking his own
life. Weddell, who had been accused of murdering his wife in January
2007, shot his mother-in-law at her home in Gustard Wood,
Hertfordshire, in January 2008 before shooting himself in the grounds of a
shooting club in Markyate (see
Incidents). The shotgun he used to
kill his mother-in-law and himself had been stolen from the club after he
had undertaken clay pigeon shooting lessons. The coroner said he might
write to the government with observations on the safeguards controlling
weapons held by gun clubs after reviewing the case.
This is Wiltshire,
17 March 2008
Karol Hanicki aimed an antique
shotgun at police called to a domestic incident in Coleview. He
pleaded guilty to possessing an imitation firearm
with intent to cause fear of violence. He also admitted an offence of
actual bodily harm on his wife and common assault on his son.
Lancashire Telegraph,
17 March 2008
Adrian Bird admitted his part in
a street melee in Bacup in which a girl was hit by a pellet from an
air pistol. He admitted affray and
possessing a firearm when prohibited. He was given six months in jail,
suspended for 12 months, with supervision and 200 hours unpaid work.
Evening Star,
17 March 2008
A cashier at a garage in
Melton, Suffolk, has spoken as police hunted for a robber who burst into
petrol station and seized £350 in notes. He said the robber had lifted
his jumper to show a gun, believed to be a silver revolver with a wooden
handle.
BBC,
17 March 2008
Three teenagers have been
charged in connection with an armed robbery on a store in St Ann's,
Nottingham. The youths, two aged 14 and one 15, were charged with
armed robbery and possession of an imitation
firearm.
BBC,
17 March 2008
Three masked men armed with a
handgun robbed a convenience store in Shenstone, near Lichfield in
Staffordshire. They stole a small quantity of cash from the till
before leaving.
BBC,
17 March 2008
Three men have been arrested
after an incident in which a window was broken and a gun fired at flats in
Derby. It is unclear what type of gun was used.
BBC,
17 March 2008
A man has been shot and killed
in the Newtown area of Birmingham. The man was found by police
officers and was taken to hospital but subsequently died. It is
believed that he was shot as he fled along an alleyway after being attacked
as he drove through area (Birmingham Mail, 21 March 2008).
BBC,
17 March 2008
A man was shot on a bus in
Streatham, south London. He was taken to a hospital where his
condition was described as stable.
Sunday Mercury,
16 March 2008
Simon Charity, 20, fired pellets
from an air rifle from his bedroom
window in Sneinton, Nottingham, and hit a pregnant woman and an
11-year-old boy. He has been sentenced to four years in youth custody.
Telegraph & Argus,
15 March 2008
Two teenage boys who robbed a
group of friends of their mobile phones in Queensbury, Bradford, in
December 2007 have been sentenced to two-and-a-half years and two years in
custody. During the robbery the 14-year-old pulled out a knife and the
17-year-old produced a handgun, later suggested to be a
ball-bearing gun. The younger boy
also admitted another robbery in which a sword or large knife was used.
The Sentinel,
15 March 2008
A
14-year-old who was shot with an air rifle between the eyebrows by another teenager was very
lucky not to be blinded. The pellet had to be removed in hospital.
Jacob Sinclair, 18, from Chesterton, Staffordshire, had aimed the rifle at the boy as he was walking down a
footpath. Sinclair had pleaded guilty to assault occasioning
actual bodily harm. He will be sentenced at a later date.
Richmond & Twickenham
Times,
15 March 2008
Bingo hall staff were held at
gunpoint during an attempted robbery in Feltham, west London.
Three men armed with a pistol demanded money before carrying out a search
behind the till but left empty-handed.
Huddersfield Daily
Examiner,
15 March 2008
Two members of a gang of five
drug dealers were give custodial sentences for robbery and attempted robbery
following two armed raids at shops in the Newsome area of
Huddersfield. Marcus Osbourne, 19, and an unnamed 17-year-old took
part in the robbery when armed with an imitation
gun in July 2007. Osbourne, who pleaded guilty to a number
of drug offences admitted robbery, attempted robbery and possessing an
imitation firearm. He was given three years in a young
offenders' institute for the drug offences and four years for the other
offences. The other teenager received four years detention and a
further two years for drug offences.
BBC,
15 March 2008
A teenager who was found in
Brixton, south London, with gunshot wounds has died in hospital.
The 19-year-old was found in a street after police and ambulance were
called. Police have arrested two males, aged 16 and 17, in connection
with the murder (Press Association, 21 March 2008).
BBC,
15 March 2008 *
A man died after being shot in a
pub in Whitmore Reans, Wolverhampton. The victim was taken to
hospital where he was later pronounced dead. The murder followed an
argument at another pub about an hour earlier (Birmingham Mail, 17
March 2008). Police have identified two men they want to speak to in
connection with the shooting (BBC, 1 May 2008). The police have
asked the city council to review the future of the pub (Express & Star,
11 June 2008).
Willesden & Brent Times,
14 March 2008
Two men have been arrested
after police seized drugs, four replica guns,
one ball-bearing gun, an
air rifle and a number of other weapons
during a dawn raid on a travellers' site in Neasden, north west
London.
Herald Express,
14 March 2008
An air
rifle sniper shot two people, one a nine-year-old boy the other a
woman, outside a leisure centre in Newton Abbot, Devon. The
woman, a care support worker was shot as she helped students with learning
difficulties into a waiting car. The boy was waiting to cross the road
when he suffered what he described to police as a 'really bad sting' to his
left upper arm. A third person later revealed that she too had fallen
victim to a similar attack when she was hit in the back outside the leisure
centre in December 2007 (Herald Express, 18 March 2008).
Crawley Observer,
14 March 2008
Police officers seized an
air rifle from four men seen carrying the
weapon in woods in Tovil, Kent. Two of the men were given a
summons to court for possession of a firearm. In another incident in
Kent a man had his air rifle confiscated
and destroyed after being spotted shooting birds in Gillingham.
He was firing the gun near a children's play area.
BBC,
14 March 2008
Two men, one carrying a firearm
threatened staff at a travel agents in Consett, County Durham.
They made off with an amount of currency.
BBC,
14 March 2008
Three men are being sought
after a robbery at a betting shop in Dorking, Surrey. Two
of the men, one carrying a black handgun, ordered staff to "get down"
while they stole cash from a till. Police believe the incident may
be linked to an attempted robbery in Thames Ditton earlier in the
day. A handgun was also brandished in that robbery (BBC, 20
March 2008).
BBC,
14 March 2008
A man has been charged with
possession of an imitation firearm with
intent to cause fear of violence. He is accused of brandishing the gun
on a bus in Ipswich.
Skelmersdale Advertiser,
13 March 2008
A three-year-old boy was shot in
the face as he was walking home with his mother on a public footpath in
Birch Green, West Lancashire. His mother had seen a group of
teenagers apparently shooting BB guns at
birds. The teenagers then pointed the guns in their direction and the
boy was hit.
Exmouth Journal,
13 March 2008
The police were investigating
damage to property in The Colony area of Exmouth thought to have been
caused by air rifle pellets.
Windows were broken.
BBC,
13 March 2008
Thomas Hughes has been found
guilty of murder and possessing a firearm with intent and has been sentenced
to a minimum of 30 years in jail. Hughes shot a pregnant woman in the
head twice in Battersea, south London, in April 2007 (see
Incidents). The
killing was described as a "ruthless execution" after a long-running dispute
between neighbours.
BBC,
13 March 2008
A man has been arrested after he
was seen with a firearm approaching people in Paddington, central
London. He has been charged with two counts of attempted robbery and
possession of an imitation firearm (BBC,
14 March 2008).
BBC,
12 March 2008
Three firearms and a quantity of ammunition were seized during a drugs operation by police in
Bradford which resulted in 59 people being charged with a total of 287
offences of supplying Class A drugs.
BBC,
12 March 2008
A shotgun was among items
found in the mud at the bottom of the Bude Canal in Cornwall
during engineering work. The weapon was taken away by the police.
BBC,
12 March 2008
Two
ball-bearing guns were discovered in a delivery of waste
paper sent for disposal at a recycling plant in Avonmouth.
The paper had been collected from several police stations.
BBC,
12 March 2008
Police believe that two
attempted armed robberies at different branches of the same bank in Surrey
are linked. The first in East Horsley took place during a cash
delivery: staff told them they did not have access to the safe. A day
later two men entered the Ashtead branch but the robbers again left
empty handed after a worker managed to press an alarm button.
Whitby Gazette,
11 March 2008
A woman visitor was apparently
shot with an airgun as she was walking
along Lifeboat Quay in Whitby. She was not injured but was
shocked. The shooting caused £60 of damage to the jacket she was
wearing.
Welwyn & Hatfield Times,
11 March 2008
A man has been charged with
possessing a firearm with intent to endanger life and possessing a firearm.
This followed reports of gunshots being fired in an area in Welwyn Garden
City, Hertfordshire. Twenty police officers were called to the
scene.
Evening Gazette
(Middlesbrough),
11 March 2008 *
In January 2008 (see
Incidents) Adam
Greener was armed with a silver revolver when he got into a woman's car in
Linthorpe, Middlesbrough, and tried to snatch her handbag. He
was under the influence of drugs at the time. He pleaded guilty to
attempting to rob and possessing a firearm or imitation firearm with intent
to commit robbery. The gun has since proved to be an
imitation which could not have been fired
and Greener has been jailed for four years (Evening Gazette, 12 April
2008).
Evening Chronicle
(Newcastle),
11 March 2008
Armed police mounted a
high-security operation which involved surrounding a car on the A696 near
Ponteland, Northumberland. A man was arrested and remains in
custody helping the police with their inquiries regarding firearms and other
offences.
Evening Chronicle
(Newcastle),
11 March 2008
A
pellet-firing replica gun was among weapons bought by a
12-year-old schoolboy at a market stall in the MetroCentre shopping centre
in Gateshead. His shocked family have complained, and bosses of
the centre have confirmed that the stallholder will be kicked-out of the
mall.
Daily Express,
11 March 2008
One of the police bodyguards to
the Duchess of Cornwall is understood to have shot and killed himself with
his own shotgun. He was found dead at his cottage in Bremhill,
Wiltshire.
BBC,
11 March 2008
A man has been arrested on
suspicion of attempted murder after a 19-year-old man was shot with a
pellet gun in the Broomhall area of
Sheffield.
BBC,
11 March 2008
Four masked raiders armed with a
Taser gun smashed windows in a bank in Mildenhall, Suffolk, and
threatened two security guards before stealing a quantity of cash.
BBC,
11 March 2008
Police seized a stun gun
disguised as a mobile phone in the Hyson Green area of Nottingham.
Two men have been charged in connection with the incident, one with
aggravated burglary of a business and possessing an offensive weapon, the
other with burglary, possessing an imitation
firearm, dangerous driving, possessing drugs and driving without
insurance.
Norwich Evening News,
10 March 2008
A cashier in a supermarket in
Hellesdon was threatened by an armed robber who pointed a gun in her
face. She was ordered to hand over cash from the till but managed to
get away and the robber escaped empty-handed.
Northampton Chronicle &
Echo,
10 March 2008
A gardener found a gun in a
hedge outside the newspapers' building in Northampton. The
weapon was believed to be a BB gun.
BBC,
10 March 2008
A three-year-old boy found a
loaded handgun in his garden in Smethwick, West Midlands, and then
his 11-year-old brother fired it at a car. The boys' mother said the
people who had dumped the gun in her flat's garden were "evil and selfish".
inthenews,
9 March 2008
An 18-year-old has been arrested
on suspicion of threats to kill after an incident in Shipham,
Somerset. Police negotiators and firearm units were deployed after
officers were alerted with reports that a man in a house could harm himself.
An air weapon was recovered from the
property.
BBC,
9 March 2008
A youth, aged 17, has been
arrested and charged after brandishing a cigarette lighter shaped like a
handgun at a burger bar in Southend. He was charged with
possession of an imitation firearm with
intent to cause fear or harassment.
BBC,
9 March 2008
A man has been charged with
three counts of attempted murder of police officers and possession of a
firearm following an incident in which shots were fired at four officers who
had approached two men in Manor House, north London. No one was
injured.
Lancashire Evening Post,
8 March 2008
A pizza delivery driver was
ambushed and robbed at gunpoint by three men in Preston. The
robbers escaped on foot with cash, jewellery and credit cards.
Crawley Observer,
8 March 2008
A 15-year-old was robbed at
gunpoint in a park in Portsmouth whilst walking home with his
girlfriend. Three men prodded him with a black handgun and demanded
cash.
Times,
7 March 2008
Two men have been jailed for
firearm offences after police raided a house in Haydock, Lancashire,
and found a number of guns. Mark Watts was found guilty of 13 offences
and was jailed for 15 years, Neil Johnston was jailed for eight years after
admitting four firearm offences. Police believe the pair were
supplying Liverpool gangs. Among the weapons found was a handgun with
four barrels capable of firing at once.
Press Association,
7 March 2008
Marvin Davidson was caught with
a loaded revolver at Hackney station in East London when he tried to
avoid a police metal detector. He has been jailed for 5 years.
Herts Advertiser,
7 March 2008
A man was held up at gunpoint in
the second firearm robbery in St Albans in a week. Three men
approached him from behind and pushed him into a side street where he was
threatened. The thieves stole his music player, wallet and mobile
phone.
Harborough Mail,
6 March 2008
Advertising hoardings at a
sports ground in Market Harborough, Leicestershire, have been
peppered with airgun pellets.
Birmingham Mail,
6 March 2008
David Bowater has admitted
producing cannabis, possessing the drug and possessing an
air rifle without holding a firearms
certificate at his home in Dudley.
BBC,
6 March 2008
A 19-year-old man was shot twice
with a sawn-off shotgun outside a house in Tyldesley, Greater
Manchester. He suffered injuries to his leg and hip and was left with
pellets lodged in his thigh.
BBC,
6 March 2008
A man carrying a handgun
demanded cash from a cashier in a bank in St John's, Worcester.
He was given money before he fled.
Yorkshire Evening Post,
5 March 2008
Police sealed off several
streets in East End Park in Leeds after reports of a gunshot.
One local resident described hearing a "very loud bang".
Bolton News,
5 March 2008
One shop owner in Bolton
surrendered 48 imitation weapons,
including a fake MP5 machine gun with laser sights, when police raided the
shop following a tip off from a member of the public. At another
premises six ball bearing guns were removed. The raids were part of
Operation Peregrine which aims to ensure that traders are complying with the
legislation implemented in October 2007 which made it illegal to sell
imitation or BB guns.
BBC,
5 March 2008
Staff at a post office in
Brentwood, Essex, were held at gunpoint by a robber armed with a small
gun. The staff handed over what police described as a "four-figure
sum".
BBC,
5 March 2008
A man carrying what appeared to
be a handgun attempted to rob a bank in the centre of Ledbury,
Herefordshire. The cashier managed to raise the alarm and the man
escaped without any cash.
BBC,
5 March 2008
An off-duty police officer
foiled a robber who held up a bank in Brighton with what he said was
a gun. The man was taken into custody after the policewoman spotted
him about to get on a bus with dye leaking out of his pocket.
This is Wiltshire,
4 March 2008
A 15-year-old was shot in the
eye with an airgun pellet as he was
walking with his girlfriend in Calne. He was allowed to return
home after surgery in hospital.
Manchester Evening News,
4 March 2008
Trading standards officers and
police recovered a large arsenal of imitation guns
from traders in Salford. The hauls included replicas of ME38
and Beretta pistols and realistic copies of police-issue semi automatics.
One owner claimed he didn't realise they were illegal and that the guns
"sell well in the school holidays".
Leicester Mercury,
4 March 2008 *
Michael Cash, one of three
gunmen who drove to a travellers' site in Bagworth, Leicestershire in
September 2007, has been jailed for five years. He opened fire
with a 12-bore shotgun at a vehicle. An unknown man fired a .38
revolver into a caravan which had a woman and an 18-month-old baby inside.
Another man fired a sawn-off shotgun at another vehicle. The attack
was the result of a feud. Cash pleaded guilty to possessing three
firearms with intent to cause fear of violence, and violent disorder.
Hartlepool Mail,
4 March 2008
A postbox in Hartlepool
has been closed by Royal Mail after a postman was shot at with an
airgun.
BBC,
4 March 2008
A man has died after a shooting
in Tipton, West Midlands. A man has been arrested in connection
with the incident.
Ilford Recorder,
3 March 2008
Two men were gunned down at a
bar in Ilford. One suffered wounds to the front of his body and
the other sustained injuries to the back of his body. Both men's
conditions have been described as stable by police. One of the men has
since died in hospital (East London & West Essex Guardian, 5 March
2008).
Herts Advertiser,
3 March 2008
An armed robber held up staff of
a St Albans hotel at gunpoint and made off with a sum of money.
Evening Gazette
(Middlesbrough),
3 March 2008 *
Eighteen-year-old Bradley
Moralee threatened a woman in a street in Guisborough with an
imitation gun in March 2007 (see
Incidents). He said "give me your purse or I'll put a
bullet in your head". He was also seem to point the
ball bearing gun (a realistic replica of a
Desert Eagle handgun) at two passing cars. He has been sent to a young
offenders' institution for two years and nine months (Evening Gazette,
16 April 2008).
East Anglian Daily Times,
3 March 2008
Claims that a shot broke a
windscreen on a train near Marks Tey in Essex have not been confirmed
by the police of Network Rail. A passenger had reported seeing a hole
in the window and being told by the driver that the train had been shot at.
BBC,
3 March 2008
Firearms were recovered from a
house in Hamworthy, Poole, where a woman's body was found after a
fire. A man was arrested at the scene on suspicion of murder.
BBC,
3 March 2008
Three men have been arrested in
connection with drugs and firearms offences. Police searched a house
in Lincoln after a member of the public reported having a gun waved
in his face.
BBC,
3 March 2008
A man was shot in the head and
critically hurt outside a nightclub in Harlesden, north-west London.
He and a friend had become involved in an argument with another man close to
the club. Two teenagers face two counts of possession of a firearm
with intent to danger life and have also been charged with one count of
causing grievous bodily harm and taking and driving away a vehicle (BBC,
9 March 2008).
BBC,
2 March 2008
Two men fled with £1000 after
threatening a delivery driver with a stun gun in Ormesby,
Middlesbrough. The driver dropped his cash bag when one of the men
brandished the weapon.
BBC,
2 March 2008
A man has been shot in what was
described as a targeted attack in Gateacre, Liverpool. His
injuries have been described as serious.
BBC,
1 March 2008
A teenager was seriously hurt
after being shot at a sports centre in Camberwell, south east London.
It is being investigated by Operation Trident.
BBC,
1 March 2008
A man has died in a shooting
incident in Lydden, Margate in Kent which police say they are
treating as suspicious. The police also said that there was no danger
to the public.
SCOTLAND
BBC, 31 March 2008 *
Police are investigating a
shooting incident at the back of a nightclub in Glasgow where a
gun was fired. No-one was injured. A man has been detained
in police custody (BBC, 2 April 2008).
Sunday Mail, 30 March 2008
A man who was deported from
Australia for threatening to kill a policeman has been arrested on an
airgun charge after a raid on a hostel
in Inverness.
Hamilton Advertiser,
27 March 2008
Adrian Young has been put on
two years' probation for pointing a .22 air
rifle with telescopic sights at a shop assistant in
Strathaven, Lanarkshire. He had admitted a charge of
possessing a firearm with intent to cause the woman to believe unlawful
violence would be used against her. The offence occurred when he
went to the flat of a friend in August 2006. Young had pointed the
gun at her whilst the woman had a cigarette outside the shop. The
next day he met her and told her that next time there would be "bullet"
in the weapon. She contacted the police who subsequently detained
Young.
Evening News (Edinburgh),
26 March 2008
A woman whose husband
attacked her with a stun gun said she is concerned he may try to contact
her again. Marek Ilves pleaded guilty to the attack, during which
the stun gun failed to activate, which happened in December 2007, and he
was fined £660 at Edinburgh Sheriff Court.
Daily Record,
25 March 2008
George Bundy from
Dunblane has had his replica guns
removed by police after a minor disturbance at his home. Officers
seized his two 1860s-style Colt pistols and a Winchester rifle for
tests. Bundy claimed that the guns cannot be converted to fire
live rounds and are always locked away.
BBC,
25 March 2008
Michael Absalom has been
jailed for eight years and six months after two armed raids on a money
exchange office in Glasgow in February 2007 (see
Incidents) and on
a bank in Troon in August 2007 (see
Incidents). After the first
incident he disposed of dyed note under a bin along with his gun, which
he had pointed at two tellers. In the second raid he menaced three
tellers with a Luger-type gun.
Daily Record,
18 March 2008
A gunman shot out windows in
three houses and a church with an airgun
in Alloa and Tullibody in Clackmannanshire.
Greenock Telegraph,
14 March 2008
A sheriff has renewed an
attack on BB guns after two teenagers appeared before her on firearms
charges. Scott McFarlane, 17, was caught firing a ball bearing gun
in the direction of a park in Gourock in September 2007. He
pleaded guilty to offences including possession of the
plastic BB gun and ammunition and was
given an absolute discharge if he returned to her court in 12 months
having been on good behaviour. John Gorry, 17, from Larkfield
was also ordered to be of good behaviour after being caught with a
BB gun and ammunition without lawful
authority or reasonable excuse in Greenock in November 2007.
BBC,
14 March 2008
Lothian and Borders Police
are destroying about 800 weapons handed in during the past six months.
The cache includes shotguns, air weapons,
replica guns and other
imitation weapons.
BBC,
14 March 2008
A World War II handgun was
found at the home of John Hutchison in Jedburgh in December 2007
(see Incidents).
He had scared youngsters in the streets of the town by showing them a
handgun holster and a hunting knife and has threatened to burn his
partner's children and set fire to their home. He has been jailed
for three years.
BBC,
12 March 2008
Two female staff were left badly
shaken after two men threatened them with what appeared to be a firearm
during a robbery at a bookmakers in Glasgow.
Scotsman,
8 March 2008
A parking warden was shot with
an air rifle in Edinburgh's New
Town. He was ticketing cars when he was hit on the hand by a pellet.
BBC,
6 March 2008
Imitation firearms were found at a Dundee flat at the
centre of a police operation. No one was arrested.
WALES
Port Talbot Guardian,
20 March 2008
In a second armed robbery in the
Afan Valley in a month a female worker at Dyffryn Rhondda Post Office
was threatened with a gun. A man made off with cash. In February
a gun was used to threaten staff at Cymmer Post Office where a large
but undisclosed amount of cash was taken. A man has admitted five
charges of robbery and five of possessing prohibited weapons (see
June 2008 Incidents).
BBC,
20 March 2008 *
A man was taken to hospital with
face and body injuries after being shot in an incident in the Mayhill
area of Swansea. Two men have been released on bail and a third man is
being questioned (BBC, 25 March 2008). A man has pleased guilty
to two charges arising out of the shooting (see
June 2008 Incidents).
South Wales Echo,
8 March 2008
A gunman threatened to shoot and
kill a takeaway delivery driver during an attack in St Mellons,
Cardiff. Three men were involved, one armed with what the driver
described as a nine-inch long black pistol and another with a lock-knife.
The men stole a mobile phone, wallet, bank cards and satellite navigation
system.
South Wales Echo,
5 March 2008
A security guard was left
traumatised when Ajad Singh pointed a handgun at his face and told him he
was about to be "wasted". Singh was jailed for two and a half years.
He was drunk when he attempted to steal bottles of wine from a store in
Splott, Cardiff in November 2007. He had the
BB gun in his pocket. He admitted
robbery and possessing an imitation firearm.
INCIDENTS INVOLVING ANIMALS
The Sentinel, 31 March 2008 *
A family's pet cat is
recovering after an operation to remove an
airgun pellet. She was shot in the spine in Cheadle,
Staffordshire, in February 2008.
Spalding Guardian,
30
March 2008
A cat died shortly after
being found by her owner lying injured in his shed in Holbeach,
Lincolnshire. She had been shot in the stomach with an
air rifle and died because of severe
internal bleeding.
Manchester Evening News, 27
March 2008
A Canada goose was shot dead
with an air rifle in Moston,
Greater Manchester. Police were called following reports that the
bird had been shot and killed. A description of the man
responsible was given to the police.
Evening Chronicle
(Newcastle), 24
March 2008
A cat is lucky to be alive
after he was shot with an airgun.
The cat was fine when he was let out of the family house in West
Denton, Newcastle, but three hours later he was found in agony under
a bush in the front garden. A vet discovered that a pellet had gone
through his kidney and perforated his intestine and pancreas. Major
surgery saved his life.
Guardian,
22 March 2008
The British Deer Society
are launching an anti-poaching campaign and will press the Association of
Chief Police Officers to provide greater resources for what it describes as
"gun crime" in the countryside. As many as 50,000 deer are killed
every year by night-time poachers and illegal bloodsports fanatics.
Shotguns, .22 rifles and crossbows are all being used. Shooting deer
at night is a crime.
Chorley Guardian,
20 March 2008
A kitten had to undergo
emergency surgery after an airgun pellet
went through his side, liver, kidney and spleen causing internal bleeding.
His owner from Chorley, Lancashire, found her pet very quiet and
lethargic and she picked him up she felt a hole in his side.
This is Hertfordshire,
19 March 2008
A goose had to be put done after
it was shot with an air rifle at
Stanborough Lakes, Welwyn Garden City. The bird was rescued
from the water by an RSPCA inspector. An hour long operation revealed
that the pellet had shattered the ear canal and the goose would not recover.
The RSPCA is caring for another goose which may also have been shot with an
air rifle.
Sunderland Echo,
19 March 2008
Two pet cats were lucky to
survive after they were both shot with an air rifle
in South Hylton. Their owner said that his neighbourhood has
been repeatedly targeted by thugs with airguns. He has now alerted the
police and other residents to the problem in a bid to put a stop to it.
Leicester Mercury,
18 March 2008 *
A badger was shot seven times in
the head in an air rifle attack. It was found dead and covered in
blood by riverside rangers in Aylestone Meadows, Leicester.
Badgers and their setts are legally protected.
BBC,
17 March 2008
Police are investigating
after a rare peregrine falcon was shot and injured in St Lawrence,
near Ventnor on the Isle of Wight. The bird was discovered with a
gun shot wound to its back in the garden of a house. A vet found
an airgun pellet still lodged in its
body as well as signs of earlier shotgun wounds that had healed.
South Wales Echo,
15 March 2008
A kitten died after being shot
"just for the thrill of it" according to his owners. The kitten
suffered an air rifle wound when he was shot
in fields near their home in St
Brides Wentlodge, Gwent.
Express & Star,
15 March 2008
A pet cat has been shot at point
blank range with an air rifle in an attack in Bilbrook,
Wolverhampton. A metal pellet lodged just an inch away from her spine.
Neath Guardian,
13 March 2008
An injured swan has been found to
have air rifle pellets lodged in its
neck. The swan was shot at Banwen Pond in the Dulais Valley.
Exmouth Journal,
13 March 2008
A day-old lamb was killed with
an airgun on a farm in Clyst St Mary,
Devon.
BBC,
13 March 2008
Three men have appeared in court
accused of killing 29 swans. The birds, all shot, were found buried in
a freshly dug pit at Radwell Lake, Bedfordshire, in October 2007.
The lake was purpose-built for legal shoots by two of the men. The men
were all charged under the Wildlife and Countryside Act with intentional
killing of mute swans. One of the men denied charges of possession of
a rifle and ammunition and failing to comply with a condition on his
firearms certificate.
BBC,
13 March 2008
A cat required surgery after
being shot with a suspected airgun
pellet in Peterhead, Aberdeenshire.
Bolton News,
8 March 2008
A show horse has been shot with
an airgun in his stables in Radcliffe.
He will be left with a scar after having had a pellet removed from his face.
The horse is the latest victim in a string of airgun attacks on animals in
Bolton.
Whitby Gazette,
7 March 2008
Two cats have been shot,
probably with an air rifle, in attacks
in Whitby, North Yorkshire. One of the cats needed extensive
surgery and has lost the sight in one eye. The other cat will also
need treatment after being shot in the cheek.
BBC,
6 March 2008
A buzzard has died after it was
found shot in Potcote, Northamptonshire. An x-ray revealed the
bird's body contained three shotgun pellets.
BBC,
4 March 2008
A cat has suffered injuries to
its neck and mouth after it was shot in the garden of a house in
Binscombe, near Godalming in Surrey. The offenders are believed to
have gone to the back of the house and shot the cat in the right side of the
neck. The cat was shot with an air rifle
and has since died (Surrey Advertiser, 25 March 2008).
