JULY 2007
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
BBC,
31 July 2007
A man hit in the leg in
Blackley was the fifth person to be shot in a five day period in
Manchester.
Somerset County Gazette,
30 July 2007
Following two armed robberies
in Minehead and Weston-super-Mare a man has appeared before
magistrates charged with six counts of robbery, six of possession of a
firearm with intent to commit an indictable offence and two counts of
possession of an imitation firearm
with intent to cause fear of violence and threats to kill.
Manchester Evening News,
30 July 2007
A 16-year-old suffered a
grazed leg when he was shot in Moss Side, a week after a
14-year-old was hit in the arm after two gunmen on bicycles shot into a
house in the same area of Manchester. A man was shot in the hip
while walking in the street in South Manchester.
BBC,
29 July 2007
Two men were arrested after
shots were fired at a plain-clothes police patrol at a recreation ground
in Neasden, north west London. The officers were chasing a
man when he turned and fired a number of shots at them.
Hartlepool Mail,
28 July 2007
An
air rifle pellet lodged in a girl's finger when she was shot as
she played with friends in woods near Wingate. The
15-year-old was walking her dog, and the group heard the "click" of an air
rifle being discharged. She was taken to hospital and the pellet was
removed and her broken finger strapped.
BBC,
28 July 2007 *
A man has been killed and two
others, including a teenager, have been injured in two shooting incidents
in Manchester. A man died in hospital after police were called to a
drive-by shooting in Chorlton-on-Medlock. Another man
admitted himself to hospital with gunshot wounds. The victims were
drinking with more than 100 other friends of a man who was killed in a
drive-by shooting in Manchester last month (see
Incidents) (Guardian, 30 July
2007). Four men have not been arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to
commit the murders of the victim in Chorlton-on-Medlock and the man whose
funeral he was attending (see
January 2008 Incidents). Two men have been charged with
murder and attempted murder (BBC, 28 March 2008). A 14-year-old boy
was taken to hospital after another shooting near Hulme Park.
Police are not saying if the shootings are linked or not.
Evening Telegraph (Peterborough),
27 July 2007
Police scrambled a helicopter
after reports of a gang of people brandishing a gun in a field in
Peterborough. Armed police found a man shooting at cans with two
teenage boys and a young boy. They had air
rifles but should not have been on the land. The group
were sent on their way with a strong warning about being more careful when
using air rifles.
Eastern Daily Press,
27 July 2007
A woman was arrested by armed
police and held overnight after complaints she had threatened a group of
children with an airgun. She was
arrested on suspicion of a firearms offence at her home in Feltwell,
Norfolk. She was released after accepting a police caution.
BBC,
27 July 2007
Shaun Brown will serve a
minimum of 12 years in jail after he left another man paralysed from the
neck down after shooting him at close range on the Stonebridge
estate, north west London, in June 2006. It was suggested that the
motive may have been revenge for the fatal shooting in Harlesden of his
cousin.
ic South London,
26 July 2007
A man armed with an
air weapon has been taking random
potshots at pedestrians in Streatham High Road and nearby streets.
Men and women were targeted over a four day period.
Bexley Times,
26 July 2007
A stash of firearms was pulled
from the River Cray in Crayford by police. There were about
20 weapons, including shotguns and rifles such as AK47s. The
decommissioned guns had been stolen from a locked van belonging to
organisers of the War and Peace show held at a farm at Paddock Wood
the previous day. The owners have been given crime prevention advice
by the police.
BBC,
26 July 2007
Marvin Wallace has been jailed
for five years after a "lethal" arsenal of weapons was found under a
toddler's bed during a raid on a flat in Elephant and Castle, south
London, in October 2005 (see
Incidents). Police found a sawn-off shotgun, four
handguns, a silencer and 97 rounds of ammunition. Wallace was found
guilty of possessing the shotgun but cleared of any connection with the
other weaponry.
BBC,
26 July 2007
A 16-year-old was shot dead
after being chased by youths on bicycles in the latest fatal shooting in
south London. Police were called to reports of shots in Stockwell
and found the teenager. He was pronounced dead at the scene. A
man has been charged with murder (Press Association, 28 July 2007).
This is Cheshire,
25 July 2007
An 18-year-old has been fined
£500 and two 17-year-olds given six month referral orders for their part
in a drive-by-style shooting with an air rifle.
The three-strong gang, two boys and a girl, shot at three cyclists in
Runcorn in April 2007. One of the cyclists was shot in the back
of the head, and the other two were hit in the knee and chest
respectively. All three offenders pleaded guilty to three counts of
assault and possession of an imitation firearm with intent.
Newbury Today,
25 July 2007
A man held up a postmistress
in Newbury at gunpoint and ordered her to hand over bundles of
cash.
Evening Chronicle (Newcastle),
25 July 2007
James Hearons has been jailed
for four years after police found a shotgun hidden inside a wardrobe in
his home in Walker. He admitted possessing the weapon while
prohibited, possessing ammunition and possession without a firearm
certificate.
Evening Chronicle (Newcastle),
25 July 2007
Kirsty Laing pleaded guilty to
possessing a self loading shotgun. The charge of possessing the
small bore 12 gauge gun carries a mandatory minimum five year jail term.
Sentencing was adjourned for probation and psychiatric reports and Laing
was remanded on bail to live with her parents in South Shields.
ic South London,
24 July 2007
Kujtim Spahiu murdered a rival
in a turf war over the right to steal from London's parking metres.
He was one of two gunmen who burst into a club in Park Royal,
north-west London, in October 2006 (see
Incidents). They sent drinkers
diving for cover as they sprayed the hall with bullets. One man died
when he was shot through the head but two other men escaped with their
lives. Spahiu was found guilty of murder and the attempted murders
of three other men. Two men were cleared of all charges. A
fourth man, said to be the lead gunman, has never been traced by police.
Spahiu will serve at least 33 years in jail.
ic South London,
24 July 2007
Shots have been fired at a bar
in Brixton. There were no reports of any gun shot injuries.
A man has been arrested on suspicion of possessing a firearm. He had
been wrestled to the ground by partygoers. Another suspect got away
and is now being hunted by police (ic South London, 26 July 2007).
ic Coventry,
24 July 2007
Two people, one a 13-year-old
boy, were shot with an air rifle in
Holbrooks. Both victims were hit in the leg and needed hospital
treatment. Two 14-year-old boys have been arrested on suspicion of
assault and released on police bail.
Grimsby Telegraph,
24 July 2007
Police found an arsenal of
weapons and drugs in a lock-up in a privately-rented garage in
Immingham. They seized a sawn-off shotgun, two high powered
air rifles, a
ball-bearing gun and a machete. A man has been arrested.
BBC,
24 July 2007
A man is critically ill after
he was shot at a club in Fulham Road, south west London, where he
worked as a bouncer. He was involved in an altercation after asking
customers to stop smoking and was shot in the rear garden area. The
victim has died after his life support machine was switched off (BBC,
27 July 2007).
BBC,
24 July 2007
A man was found with a leg
injury after reports of a gunshot in Fishwick, Preston. He
was taken to hospital, although his injuries are not believed to be
life-threatening.
The Press (York),
23 July 2007
Youths carrying imitation
firearms are spreading panic in Hambleton. Police have warned
that offenders are putting their own lives in danger by wielding the
weapons. They have made two arrests and have seized three
ball-bearing guns.
BBC,
23 July 2007
A teenager escaped injury when
he was shot at during a drive-by shooting in Old Trafford,
Manchester. He was not hit by the bullet but a shop window was
damaged.
BBC,
23 July 2007
A man and a woman were shot in
an attack in Toxteth, Liverpool. A man suffered gunshot
wounds to his back and a woman was shot in the hand. Police believe
the attack was targeted.
BBC,
23 July 2007
Three people have been
arrested in Bridlington after two incidents involving an
airgun. A man was shot in the
stomach but did not need treatment for a blister caused by a pellet and
the upstairs window of a house was damaged by two pellet holes. Two
of those arrested were later released without charge and a 20-year-old man
was given police bail.
Sunday Mail,
22 July 2007
A 14-year-old was recovering
in hospital after being shot in the face with an
airgun by a gang of youths in Witley, Surrey. He
had a pellet removed from his neck.
BBC,
22 July 2007
A gun was fired in an incident
in Hazelwood, near Selby in Yorkshire. No one is thought to
have been injured by the shot. A man has been arrested and is being
questioned by police.
This is Hampshire,
21 July 2007
Armed police went to a car
park in Lyndhurst after three teenagers were spotted carrying what
appeared to be a larger rifle before getting into a car. A
ball-bearing firing air rifle was found
in the boot when the car was stopped. Three 17-year-olds were
arrested and later released having received a final warning.
This is Cheshire,
19 July 2007
An elderly woman walking home
in Orford was forced to hand over her purse by a teenager who
apparently pointed a black handgun at her. A second teenager asked
her if she wanted her belongings back and both youths returned, handed
back the purse and said it had just been a joke.
Newbury Today,
19 July 2007
A teenager allegedly held up a
shop assistant in Hungerford, Berkshire, with a
BB gun before making his getaway on a
bicycle. A 15-year-old was arrested on suspicion of possessing an
imitation firearm but police later released him without charge.
Police are now seeking another youth.
ic South London,
19 July 2007 *
A man, aged about 20, was shot
in the abdomen in a street in Woolwich, south east London, died in
hospital the following evening. It is unknown whether the killing
involved rival gangs but recent weeks have seen a dramatic increase in
gang violence in Greenwich. Two men who are on trial have denied
murder (see July 2008 Incidents).
BBC,
19 July 2007 *
The mother of a 12-year-old
girl who died after being shot at her home in Gorton, Manchester in
April 2007 (see Incidents)
has been charged with possession of a gun. She pleased guilty to
possession of a firearm (see
September 2007 Incidents).
Wirral Globe,
18 July 2007
An 18-year-old was spotted
leaning out of a car window and shooting at members of the public in
New Brighton. He was arrested and issued with a caution.
The police seized the BB gun.
The 17-year-old driver was also arrested but was not charged.
This is Cheshire,
18 July 2007
The window of a police car was
shattered after what was believed to have been an
air rifle pellet flew past the policeman
inside the vehicle. The car was parked on a road in Latchford.
Redditch Standard,
18 July 2007
A man who was out jogging in
Redditch was hit in the leg with a pellet, believed to be from an
air rifle. A group of youths,
including three boys and a girl, was seen in the area shortly after the
jogger was hit. One of the boys was said to be carrying an air
rifle.
Nottingham Evening Post,
18 July 2007
Courtney Hunt has been jailed
for a minimum of 30 years for the murder of a 17-year-old who was shot
dead in The Meadows, Nottingham, in September 2006 (see
Incidents).
His victim was once his friend but was in competition with Hunt, an
established drug dealer, and was alleged to have insulted him just before
the shooting. Hunt was also given a 12 year concurrent sentence for
possession of a firearm.
ic Coventry,
18 July 2007
An
airgun was fired at a bus in Walsgrave shattering the
windscreen and sending a shard of glass into the driver's eye. He
was treated in hospital, and police said he had been lucky not to lose the
sight in his eye.
East London and West Essex
Guardian,
18 July 2007
Two men armed with a handgun
burst into a home in Epping, Essex, and fled with an assortment of
valuable goods, including watches, a camera and a computer. The
victim answered the door at his home, was knocked to the ground and
threatened with the gun. He was left very shaken.
Citizen (Chorley),
18 July 2007
Two teenagers approached a
youth in Chorley, Lancashire, and produced an
air rifle before taking his mobile phone.
Two teenagers were arrested and charged with robbery and an air rifle
was recovered.
BBC,
18 July 2007
A teenager died after he was
accidentally shot in the head by a friend while out shooting on farmland
in Southease, East Sussex. The group had been aiming at birds
from a hide when he was shot.
BBC,
18 July 2007
A man has been accused of
shooting dead another man in Birmingham in April 2003. The
victim died of multiple gunshot wounds to his head and chest.
Another was is also due in court accused of possession of firearms.
BBC,
18 July 2007
A 16-year-old has been shot in
the eye with a pellet fired from a BB gun.
He was one of a group of people on playing fields in Deeping St James,
Lincolnshire. The victim was taken to hospital for treatment and was
lucky not to lose his eye. Another 16-year-old boy was arrested on
suspicion of actual bodily harm.
BBC,
18 July 2007
Replica guns, knives and cowboy clothes have been stolen by
burglars who broke into a house in Standens Barn, Northampton.
The guns were twp replica Colt revolvers in brown and black holsters and a
Smith and Wesson single-action gun.
BBC,
18 July 2007
Jaromir Kubanik and Vito
Bertone have been jailed for 12 years each for smuggling firearms and
ammunition into the UK. They were arrested in October 2006 when
customs officers found firearms components, knives and ammunition while
searching a car at Dover docks (see
Incidents). Both men were found guilty of
two counts of possessing firearms with intent to endanger life.
Reuters,
17 July 2007
Two men have been charged with
firearms offences after officers stopped a car full of guns in the
Burnage area of Manchester. Both are charged with possession of
a firearm with intent to endanger life and conspiracy to possess a firearm
with intent to endanger life.
ic Coventry,
17 July 2007
A teacher was shot in the head
at the end of a sports coaching session in a school playground in
Nuneaton. She was hit by an airgun
pellet minutes after junior school pupils had concluded an after-school
cricket session. The pellet was embedded in her scalp and she had to
have it surgically removed in hospital.
BBC,
17 July 2007
A 16-year-old was hit in the
chest in a drive-by shooting in Millharbour, east London. He
was with a group of people when a single shot was fired from a vehicle.
The victim is in a stable condition in hospital.
BBC,
17 July 2007
Police were called to a
property in Hayle, Cornwall, after reports that a man had been seen
entering with a firearm. A woman was arrested but released without
charge.
Wimbledon Guardian,
16 July 2007 *
A man died in hospital after a
double shooting in Wandsworth. The shooting took place
outside a bar. The second victim, believed to be one of the club's
bouncers, was in a stable condition. It is thought that a gunman had
opened fire with a sub-machine gun. Detectives hunting the killer
have paraded a Mac 10 sub machine gun believed to be exactly like the
murder weapon (ic South London, 5 October 2007).
The Press (York),
16 July 2007
A window cleaner was fired at
by a youth leaning out of a nearby attic window in York. The
man described how there was an almighty smack on the glass of the window
he was cleaning and he saw a lad firing from a window opposite with either
an air rifle or a
ball bearing gun. He was left
feeling shaken and comments that "if the pellet had come through the glass
[which was toughened] it could have blinded me".
ic South London,
16 July 2007
Three thieves, aged about 20,
threatened staff at a jewellers in Coulsdon with a gun.
Although they smashed cabinets with hammers they only ran off with
earrings worth just £100. The robbers fled before police arrived in
response to the panic button being pressed.
Evening Telegraph
(Peterborough),
16 July 2007
Terrified members of the
public in Spalding, Lincolnshire, called police after seeing two
men brandishing what looked like a gun in a threatening manner. Two
men were arrested for possessing an imitation
firearm with intent to cause fear of violence.
Daily Mail,
16 July 2007 *
Marvin Airey has admitted
charges of assault, grievous bodily harm and possession of a weapon
following an incident outside a school in Bristol in October 2006
(see Incidents).
He paralysed a male teacher after electrocuting him with a 950,000 volt
stun gun, an illegal weapon, and then punched a female teacher as she
tried to help. He was sentenced to six years in a young offenders'
institute (BBC, 10 September 2007).
BBC, 15 July 2007
Police officers cordoned off
an area of land in Three Mile Cross, near Reading in Berkshire,
whilst searching rural outbuildings over fears that they were being used
to convert imitation weapons into
firearms.
Express & Star,
14 July 2007
Armed police swooped on a
residential street in Bridgtown in Cannock, Staffordshire, in
response to reports of a man with a gun. They surrounded a car,
smashed its windows and removed items from the vehicle. A man was
arrested but not firearm was recovered.
Huddersfield Daily Examiner,
13 July 2007
A man was shot in the leg in a
late-night incident in Thornton Lodge, Huddersfield. The
shooting is believed to have been part of a continuing dispute between
gangs and happened when a group of about 10 youths smashed a back window
at the house. The shot man was taken to hospital.
This is Cheshire,
12 July 2007
Police are hunting for Craig
Dodd, formerly from Longford, days after he was released from
Risley Prison. He is wanted for breaking the terms of his release
and breaching his licence. Dodd had been jailed last year after
being sentenced to two years for possession of an
imitation firearm with intent to cause
fear and violence. It is reported that he has a history of violence.
ic The Wharf,
12 July 2007
Two people, a man and a woman,
were forced to hand over several items by a group of men brandishing a
silver handgun in Mudchute Park on the Isle of Dogs in east London.
The weapon had a slide and was not a revolver. This incident, which
occurred last month, happened a day before another armed robbery in the
area in which a silver handgun was used at Limehouse DLR station
(see June 2007 Incidents).
BBC,
12 July 2007
An armed gang attacked a man
with a hammer and robbed him at gunpoint in an incident in Dudley,
West Midlands. The victim had his car keys, car and mobile phone
stolen. The police said that he had been threatened with a handgun
by seven offenders who demanded money.
Reuters,
11 July 2007
A man was arrested near
Downing Street in London in possession of an
imitation gun. A police officer
spotted what he believed to be a gun in the man's car. There had
been no security breach.
Horncastle News,
11 July 2007 *
Children in Caistor,
Lincolnshire, were ushered back into school when air rifle shots were
fired in their direction from a nearby house. Police seized an
air rifle and arrested two teenagers.
They were later released without charge.
The Herald (Plymouth),
11 July 2007
Two Royal Marines have been
chastised by police after they were spotted with a
BB gun whilst sitting in their car at a
car park in Plymouth. A woman believed than one of the men
was holding an automatic pistol on his lap. Her husband saw a
magazine being pulled from the gun and then replaced. Plymouth
police said that the two men were 'given advice' and told not to carry the
recently purchased gun in public view again.
BBC,
10 July 2007
An armed man walked into a
convenience store in Lanesfield, Wolverhampton, and stole cash from
the till. No shots were fired and no-one was injured.
BBC,
10 July 2007
Police have released a CCTV
image of two men alleged to have carried out a multi-million pound
jewellery theft in West London. The suspects arrived in a
Bentley, entered the shop and spoke to staff and then pulled out guns.
Argus (Brighton),
10 July 2007
A gunman escaped with a cash
box after holding up a security van delivering money to a bank in
Worthing. Police said that the raider threatened the two guards
using a "small handgun".
Norwich Evening News,
9 July 2007
A seven-hour stand off took
place between an man and police after neighbours spotted him in his back
garden in Earlham, Norfolk, firing a gun and wielding a machete.
They feared the firearm was dangerous. Officers finally stormed the
property, arrested the man and seized the machete and what is believed to
have been a BB gun. He was being
question on suspicion of possession of a firearm.
MK News,
9 July 2007
Police are hunting a gunman
who attacked a flat in Milton Keynes. The residents were
woken by a bang and the sound of broken glass. No one was injured.
BBC,
9 July 2007
A man was arrested on
suspicion of possessing firearms with intent to cause fear after police
received reports of a gun being brandished at a party in Eastington,
Gloucestershire. An air rifle
and a handgun which fires pellets were
recovered at the address where the man was arrested.
BBC,
9 July 2007
In a drive-by shooting in the
Heaton Mersey area of Stockport, Cheshire, a man was shot in the
chest. He was being treated in hospital where he was in a stable
condition.
BBC,
9 July 2007
Police are appealing for
information following reports of a gun fight in Harlesden, north
west London.
BBC,
9 July 2007
A man was in a serious
condition after suffering suspected gunshot wounds when he was attacked by
two men on a motorcycle in Bow, east London. His condition is
not believed to be life threatening.
BBC,
9 July 2007
Two men were shot outside a
pub in Willenhall, West Midlands, after an altercation between two
groups of men. A man was also stabbed during the incident. One
shooting victim, who was hit in the neck, is in a critical but stable
condition, the other who was shot in the leg and stomach has since been
discharged from hospital. Two 19-year-olds have been charged with
attempted murder and one of them has been charged with possessing a
firearm (BBC, 14 July 2007).
This is Nottingham,
7 July 2007
A teenager says he is lucky to
be alive after being shot with an airgun.
He was walking a dog with a friend through a part in St Ann's,
Nottingham, when he was hit in the arm. He was taken to hospital for
treatment, is still off school and will not be allowed to play sports
until he is fully recovered.
BBC,
7 July 2007
A 16-year-old boy has been
injured in a shooting in Hulme, Greater Manchester. He was
hit in the buttock by one of a number of shots fired from a group of
people. The victim is in hospital and his condition is described as
stable.
BBC,
7 July 2007
A man was arrested after an
armed response team was called to a property in Exeter following
reports of a man threatening someone with a gun. Armed officers
seized two BB guns.
BBC,
7 July 2007
An armed man held up a petrol
station in Hazlemere, Buckinghamshire. He pointed a gun at
the cashier and cash was handed over in distinctive plastic canisters
which the robber put in a white plastic carrier bag.
Bolton News,
6 July 2007
Oliver Kettle ran amok with a
blank firing imitation Glock handgun,
firing four rounds into the air when he was drunk after a party in
Bolton in March 2007. Two pain clothes police officers who were
called to the scene were threatened by Kettle. He refused to drop
the gun but was pinned to the ground and arrested. He pleaded guilty
to possession of a firearm and was jailed for two years.
Scunthorpe Telegraph,
5 July 2007
A man was held at gunpoint in
a street in Scunthorpe and made to hand over his wallet. The
victim was beckoned over to a car as he walked along the road and the
passenger then pulled a gun and demanded the wallet.
ic Coventry,
5 July 2007
A youth with an
air rifle shot out decorative lights
mounted in the gates of a house in Wilmcote. Pellets
shattered the bulbs and the lamps' plastic casing.
BBC,
5 July 2007 *
A 20-year-old man was shot
dead in a minicab in Enfield, north London. The police
believe shots were fired from a van which followed the minicab into a car
park. The victim was shot as he got out of the cab.
BBC,
5 July 2007
A woman in a wheelchair was
shot in the chest with an airgun while
she tended her husband's grave at the cemetery in Newark,
Nottinghamshire. She heard a popping sound before feeling a burning
sensation in her chest. She was treated for shock at the scene.
This is Lancashire,
4 July 2007
An armed robber escaped with
around £500 in cash after terrorising staff at a takeaway in South
Shore. He demanded money from the till while pointing a gun at
staff.
ic South London,
4 July 2007
After Reggie Sackey had been
stopped for not wearing a seat belt whilst driving in Tooting,
police found a handgun wrapped in a sock and wedged between his buttocks.
The 8mm pistol was a converted firearm. Officers had found a small
bag of marijuana in his car and arrested him. He pleaded guilty of
possessing a firearm, seven rounds of ammunition and herbal cannabis.
He also admitted a charge of possessing a firearm within a prohibited
period after leaving prison. Sentencing was adjourned.
East Anglian Daily Times,
4 July 2007
A teenager has told how she
watched in horror as two gunmen fled after robbing a security guard and
firing a warning shot. She was working at a pharmacy in
Colchester when she and her colleagues heard a gunshot. The
gunmen had confronted the guard as he delivered cash to a bank and
snatched a cash box.
Daily Echo,
4 July 2007
A mother and her
eight-week-old son were at the scene of two
airgun shootings in Wyke Regis, Dorset. In the
first incident a seagull was shot and fell near the baby as he played.
In the other incident they were on a bus when shots from an air weapon
broke two nearby windows.
BBC,
3 July 2007
A former Royal protection
officer has denied charges of dangerous driving, possessing a firearm with
intent to cause fear and false imprisonment. The charges follow an
incident in November 2006 (see
Incidents) when a photographer is alleged to have been held at
gunpoint after he took photos of the man at his home in Chafford Hundred,
Essex, and was then chased by car to a roundabout near the Lakeside
shopping centre in Thurrock where the incident took place.
The man has been cleared of threatening the photographer with a gun (Times,
28 July 2007).
BBC,
3 July 2007
A bookmakers in Englefield
Green, Surrey, was robbed by two men. Staff were threatened with
a gun by the men who demanded money from the safe. They fled with
£800 in a plastic bag.
Cambs24,
2 July 2007
An 18-year-old man received
minor injuries after being shot with what is believed to have been an
air rifle as he worked at an industrial
estate in Eaton Socon, Cambridgeshire. The man was working
with a colleague on scaffolding at the site when several shots were fired.
BBC,
2 July 2007
Two men, one carrying a
handgun and the other a knife, walked into a shop in Filton,
Bristol, and demanded the shopkeeper handed over cash. Money and
beer were stolen, but the beer together with clothing was dropped close
by.
BBC,
2 July 2007
A court has heard how ball
bearings, and a hoard of weapons including an
airgun and several BB guns
were found during a two-day search of a house in Colne, Lancashire,
belonging to one of two men accused of conspiracy to cause an explosion
with chemicals ordered over the internet. The man admits possessing
explosives, a charge denied by the other defendant. Robert Cottage
was jailed for two and a half years (Guardian, 31 July 2007).
BBC,
1 July 2007
A teenager was robbed of
headphones at gunpoint when he was approached by a group of teenagers in
Preston. The victim was treated in hospital for minor
injuries.
SCOTLAND
ic Renfrewshire,
23 July 2007
A masked robber escaped with
£7000 after holding up staff at a bank in Paisley. Staff were
threatened at gunpoint during the robbery but no shots were fired. The
money will be so badly damaged with dye that it will be worthless.
ic Renfrewshire,
18 July 2007
A cache of weapons was found
by police searching a flat in Renfrew. Police were called
after neighbours claimed to have seen two men hanging out of a window
brandishing a rifle. Officers found a powerful
air rifle, a machete, a baseball bat and
parts of a sawn-off shotgun. Two men have been arrested under the
Firearms Act and also face breach of the peace offences.
Evening News (Edinburgh),
11 July 2007
Nicky Robertson, 20, who shot
a man with a sawn-off shotgun as he celebrated Hibernian FC's CIS Cup
Final victory outside a pub in Edinburgh in March 2007 (see
Incidents), has been
jailed for ten years for the "attempted assassination". He later
told police that he had been "trying to kill" his victim in the mistaken
belief that he was planning to attack him.
BBC,
6 July 2007
Two men have been charged with
firearms offences after police raided a number of homes in Mid Craigie,
Dundee, acting on a tip-off. Several streets were cordoned off
during the operation.
BBC,
5 July 2007
Three men face life sentences
for the murder of a man in Castlemilk, Glasgow, in August 2006 (see
Incidents).
The victim was shot in a contract killing at his home which was thought to
have been targeted at the victim's father. John Smith and Thomas
Campling were found guilty of murder and Marcello Pacitti admitted the
shooting. A fourth man, Alan Burns, was cleared of murder but
convicted of culpable homicide. Smith and Campling have been told
they must spend at least 25 years behind bars, Burns was jailed for
10 years (BBC, 2 August 2007).
BBC, 5 July 2007
Susan Halley fired shots into
several buildings near a children's play park in Perth in March 2007.
A court heard that she suffered from bi-polar disorder and was suffering
from a manic episode at the time. She was formally acquitted on the
grounds of insanity and has been made the subject of a hospital order.
Halley produced a high-powered air pistol from her pocket when police found her. Two pellets were also found.
She admitted two charges, including recklessly discharging a firearm and
possessing the weapon without lawful authority.
WALES
South Wales Echo,
26 July 2007
A cyclist was shot in the face
with an airgun as he rode towards
Merthyr Tydfil along the Taff Trail at Rhydyfelin. The pellet
narrowly missed his right eye.
South Wales Evening Post,
12 July 2007
Police found an
air rifle in a wardrobe when they
searched a man's bedroom after his parents became concerned he might harm
himself. Steven Whyte was in the room in Winch Wen, Swansea,
at the time. As Whyte had served a prison term for robbery he was
prohibited from possessing the weapon. He has been placed under
supervision for a year and ordered to do 240 hours of unpaid work for the
community.
BBC,
5 July 2007
Police are trying to trace a
man who was reportedly seen carrying a gun outside a bank in Corwen,
Denbighshire. Armed officers and the police helicopter were
scrambled after the man was spotted.
INCIDENTS INVOLVING ANIMALS
BBC,
31 July 2007
Two four-week-old moorhen chicks
have been shot dead with airguns at a
nature reserve at Wingate Quarry in County Durham. Wildlife
officers found evidence of drinking parties by groups of youths, with
property damaged and wildlife affected.
BBC,
20 July 2007
Two seagulls were killed and
another four were so severely injured they had to be put down after they
were shot with an air rifle in
Hartlepool. The RSPCA described the case as shocking.
Evening Telegraph (Peterborough),
19 July 2007
Two incidents have been
reported from
Bourne, Lincolnshire. A BB gun
was seized from a 12-year-old boy who was reportedly firing pellets at his
neighbour's dog. There were also reports of youths firing
BB guns at ducks in Wellhead Park.
Somerset County Gazette,
12 July 2007
Three captive fox cubs were
killed and a fourth had to be put to sleep after being shot in the head by
a trespasser at Wellisford, near Wellington. They were being
cared for by the landowner in a pen as part of an RSPCA soft release
scheme. They had all been shot in the head twice with an
air rifle.
This is Nottingham,
11 July 2007
A swan has died after being
shot with an air rifle at
Rushcliffe Country Park. It was rescued by rangers who planed to
send the bird to Yorkshire Swan Rescue but it died 45 minutes into the
journey.
Herald,
11 July 2007
A second cat has been reported
to have been shot with an airgun in
Edinburgh. The cat was shot in the back in the Craigievar Square
area of the city.
BBC,
11 July 2007
A petition has been set up
calling for further legislation to control the use of
air weapons after
reports of a spate of incidents in Birchington, near Margate in
Kent, which have injured animals. Police are aware of the problems
and are investigating.
BBC,
10 July 2007
A father whose cat was shot
with an airgun in Edinburgh
told how his young daughter found their pet and thought it was covered in
ketchup. The cat had been shot in the back of the left leg.
Vets had to operate to remove the pellet that was left behind.
Salisbury Journal,
9 July 2007
A family in Amesbury
have been left angry and upset after someone shot their pet cat with an
air rifle. The cat was found
with a wound just above one of his eyes and an airgun pellet was found
embedded in his head.
Daily Echo,
4 July 2007
See Incident in
ENGLAND
