2004

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.  The Summaries were begun in September 2004.  Items that have been amended or added to the list since the Summary was written are marked (*).

 

ENGLAND

BBC, 31 December 2004

A police officer was left shaken but otherwise uninjured after he was shot at while trying to talk to three men at Brockley Cross.  The shooting happened after a robbery was reported.

BBC, 31 December 2004

Firearms officers and a police helicopter were despatched after reports of gunfire.  They discovered a clay pigeon shoot had taken place at disused slurry pits near Mapperley, Ilkeston.  Derbyshire Police have asked that organisers of shoots should let them know what had been arranged.

BBC, 31 December 2004

A shop owner in Birstall was shot at twice during an armed attack but escaped injury.  The attacker was believed to be armed with a handgun.

Epping Forest Guardian, 30 December 2004

The campaign by the paper for a total ban on BB guns has been backed by a wheelchair-bound man  who was shot in the legs in a Buckhurst Hill street.

Eastern Daily Press, 30 December 2004

In a report on a recent spate of vandalism and anti-social behaviour in Mattishall the paper described how air rifle pellets were fired at the surgery, shattering a window.

Rochdale Observer, 29 December 2004

An airgun was used to try and shatter historic stained-glass windows at Rochdale Parish Church.  Two cartridges from a power airgun were found in the church grounds.

BBC, 29 December 2004

A man was killed on his doorstep in Speke in what Merseyside Police believe was a targeted attack.  He had been wounded in the chest.

BBC, 29 December 2004

A man has been charged with possessing an imitation handgun in a shop in St Albans.

BBC, 29 December 2004

A Sheffield shopkeeper held on to an armed robber's shotgun as the attacker fired shots during a raid on Stradbroke post office.  The gunman and his accomplice escaped with a small amount of cash.

PA News, 27 December 2004

A man was fighting for his life in hospital after a shooting at a nightclub in Vauxhall.  A man was arrested close to the scene.

BBC, 25 December 2004

A man was shot in the head in an attack in Handsworth, Birmingham.  He had to undergo surgery but his injuries were not life threatening.

Times & Star (West Cumbria), 24 December 2004

At West Allerdale court, Gareth Silkin admitted punching a police officer and firing a paintball gun in the centre of Cockermouth.  A witness had been alarmed when she saw the gun pop out of a Land Rover window.

Derby Evening Telegraph, 24 December 2004

Nick Clayton was armed with a shotgun when he burst into a woman's home in Derby and subjected her to a sex attack.  He was arrested by armed police at the scene four hours later.  Clayton admitted possessing a firearm with intent to endanger life and false imprisonment with the intention to commit a sexual assault.  He has been jailed for 8 years (BBC, 4 January 2005).

Norfolk News, 23 December 2004

Ten-year old brothers from Great Yarmouth have been made the subject of anti-social behaviour orders.  Among various activities they were accused of firing a BB gun at other people, windows and cars.

Journal (Newcastle), 23 December 2004

Stanley Bell, who held up a security officer at gunpoint outside a South Tyneside bank, has been jailed for five years.  He had escaped with two bags of small change.

icCoventry, 23 December 2004

Police and trading standards officials visited a shop in Coventry after concerns about the sale of replica guns raised in the Evening Telegraph.  They confirmed that the shop was complying with the law but will be making return visits to ensure that the shop continues to comply.

Doncaster Today, 23 December 2004

Two 12-year-old boys were shot in the face with BB guns at a school in Balby.  Four boys were arrested after the incident.

Bucks Free Press, 23 December 2004

A masked gunman threatened staff at a convenience store in High Wycombe.  The man escaped with a large sum of cash.

BBC, 23 December 2004

Four men were arrested in Runcorn on suspicion of possessing or trying to obtain a firearm.  This was part of a national clampdown on buying prohibited weapons over the internet.

BBC, 22 December 2004 *

A 17-year-old has been charged with manslaughter after an 18-year-old died in a shooting in Newall Green, Manchester.

BBC, 22 December 2004

Joseph Mee, one of two men convicted for the brutal murder of a man near Heworth Metro station, had been cautioned by police for shooting a girl with an air rifle just before the killing in April 2004.

Stockport Express, 21 December 2004

A grandmother who was shot in the face with an air rifle as she waited as a bus stop in Stockport on her way home has supported calls to halt the underage sales of the weapons.

BBC, 20 December 2004

A teenage girl was hit by three paintball shots fired from a passing car in Brighton.  Sussex Police said she could have been seriously injured.

BBC, 20 December 2004

Two men were critically wounded after an attack at a pub in Wavertree, Liverpool.  A number of masked men burst into the pub and shot one man in the stomach and beat the other with baseball bats.

AOL News, 20 December 2004

A police officer was shot in the leg after stopping a car in Bromley.  A man was later arrested and charged with possession of a firearm with intent to endanger life and possession of a firearm with intent to commit an indictable offence (PA News, 27 December 2004).  He was later jailed for 22 years for attempted murder (see August 2005 Incidents).

PA News, 19 December 2004

A 14-year-old boy was hurt in a drive-by shooting in Croxteth.  He suffered injuries to his legs and back.

Manchester News, 18 December 2004

Edward Moran, a rapist from Partington who preyed on young children, had shot one of his victims, a boy of 13, with an air pistol.  Moran faces a substantial jail sentence after being convicted by a jury in Manchester.

Evening Chronicle (Newcastle), 18 December 2004

A teenager is almost completely blind in one eye after being shot with an airgun by a 16-year-old youth in Ryton.  The youth was convicted of grievous bodily harm and was sentenced to 14 months in a young offenders institution and made the subject of an anti-social behaviour order for two years (Evening Chronicle, 20 January 2005).

Telegraph, 18 December 2004

A gunman jumped off the back of a motorbike and into the passenger seat of a car, threatening to shoot the driver if she did not drive.  The incident took place in Cromwell Road in west London.  The gunman hijacked the car after she leapt out.

Rochdale Observer, 17 December 2004

A four-month-old baby and her parents were lucky to escape serious injury when their car was hit by an airgun pellet in Rochdale.  The back window of the car was completely shattered.

icCroydon, 17 December 2004

Michael Gilead claimed he was surprised when police found a powerful air pistol (a Brocock Magnum 5.5 gun) at his South Norwood home.  He had 65 previous convictions including firearms offences and admitted possession of a prohibited weapon.  He was jailed for five years.

Hucknall Today, 17 December 2004

Shots have been fired at shops and pubs in random attacks in Hucknall.  It is not known what weapon was used but there is speculation that it could have been a BB gun, an air rifle or a catapult.

BBC, 15 December 2004 *

A sixteen-year-old has pleaded guilty to perverting the course of justice and with possessing a firearm without the appropriate certificates after the death of a teenager who was shot in the head at Quarry Bank, a disused quarry near Thirsk (see Incidents from February 2004).  An adult, Anthony Knowles, admitted charges of aiding and abetting the boy in relation to the firearm offences and failing to comply with the conditions of a shotgun certificate.  An open verdict was recorded at an inquest held in September 2005 (Yorkshire Post, 20 September 2005).

Mirror, 15 December 2004

Gamekeepers Jessica Allinson and Alexander Szyndel admitted possessing a firearm with intent to cause fear of violence and criminal damage while in possession of firearms after they opened fire at an illegal rave at Netley Heath in Surrey.  They fired double-barrelled shotguns towards cars, took out two tyres of a car and  Allinson pointed her gun at a man.  They were jailed for three months each (BBC, 14 January 2005).

BBC, 15 December 2004

Carl Mello of Toxteth, who shot dead his best friend with a stolen shotgun, was sentenced to three years detention.  The pair were test firing the shotgun which Mello had bought for £800 when his friend was hit in the arm and back.

BBC, 13 December 2004

A man has appeared in court charged with firearms offences after gunshots were allegedly fired at a car in the Sneinton neighbourhood of Nottingham.

Express, 11 December 2004

A boy of 10 sparked a major police operation in Weston-super-Mare by playing with a replica pump action ball bearing gun in a front garden.  Streets were sealed off and marksmen positioned.  The gun, a replica of the Japanese-made plastic M3 Super 90 rifle) had been bought from a market stall in Birmingham for £25.

Evening Post (Nottingham),  11 December 2004

Ezra Davis was jailed for eight years after being caught with a loaded gun (Brocock ME9 Para) in St Ann's whilst riding a BMX.  He pleaded guilty to possession of a firearm and ammunition in a public place and possession with intent to supply Class 'A' drugs.

Evening Gazette (Middlesbrough), 11 December 2004

Shane Round and Peter Caswell were given long jail sentences after pleading guilty to robbing staff at the Thornaby ex-Servicemen's Club and to possessing a firearm.

Journal (Newcastle), 10 December 2004

Richard Knowles had just bought a .22 air rifle and ammunition when he showed off the gun to friends in a café in Newcastle.  Armed police arrived in response to alarmed customers.  Knowles was initially charged with possessing a firearm with intent to cause fear of violence, but the prosecution accepted his guilty plea to a lesser public order offence.  The gun and ammunition were confiscated, and he was given a two-year conditional discharge and an anti-social behaviour order preventing him possessing or using any real or imitation firearm for five years.

icSolihull, 10 December 2004

Andrew Reedman from Chelmsley Wood bought an illegal gun, capable of discharging CS gas, on the internet.  He pleaded guilty to possessing the firearm and has been given 60 hours community service.

Yorkshire Post, 8 December 2004

A leading Leeds criminal was killed when he was shot three times with a shotgun in front of his girlfriend whilst walking in Bramley.  Police say their investigations have been hampered by a wall of silence.

PA News, 7 December 2004

Michael David Patrick was facing a jail sentence after he admitted selling an Uzi 9mm machine gun to an undercover journalist.  Sky News were following up his online advertisement for an air pistol and filmed the handing over of the Uzi in a car park in Chiswick.  He was jailed for six years (BBC, 16 December 2004).

Yorkshire Post, 7 December 2004

Peter Hopkins, a respected photographer shot himself in the head with an air pistol and hanged himself in the garage of his home in North Dalton, near Driffield.  An inquest recorded a verdict of suicide.

Yorkshire Post, 6 December 2004

The father of a boy arrested by armed officers during a mock battle involving BB guns at the rear of the Frenchgate Centre in Doncaster has backed a call from South Yorkshire Police for parents not to buy replica weapons for their children.

icCoventry, 6 December 2004

Two men wearing hooded tops and scarves and armed with a gun raided a building society in Coventry.  No shots were fired.

PA News, 6 December 2004

Mark Lee was sentenced to five years' imprisonment after admitting possession of an Agram 2000 sub-machine gun.  The Croatian-made weapons, which fire 750 rounds a minute, are considered to be one of the world's deadliest guns.  Lee's arrest followed an operation by Operation Trident.  Lee was arrested at his home in Islington.

BBC, 5 December 2004

Gunshots were fired at a house in the Aigburth area of Liverpool.  A woman suffered cuts to her arm caused by glass from a window shattered by the gun fire.

PA News, 3 December 2004

Nine shots were fired into a ground-floor flat in Rugby.  The three occupants escaped unhurt.

National Newspapers, 3 December 2004

David Bieber was jailed for life for shooting dead one policeman and injuring two others in Leeds on Boxing Day 2003.  He had denied murder, two counts of attempted murder and possessing a firearm with intent to endanger life but had admitted possessing 298 9mm bullet cartridges without a firearm certificate.  Bieber, an ex-US Marine, may be linked with other major crimes in the UK and USA.  Oxfam and Amnesty International claim that the gun used in the shootings, a HS-95 9mm pistol, was part of a consignment licensed for export from Croatia to a US company in 1998.  Bogus export papers were used and only 146 guns from the total shipment of 2,750 have been recovered.

Epping Forest Guardian, 2 December 2004

A bus was attacked with what was probably a pellet from a ball-bearing gun in Nazeing.  Glass door panels were shattered.

PA News, 2 December 2004

A man believed to be armed with a firearm was shot by police in Weston-super-Mare.  Two baton rounds were discharged. The man was arrested on suspicion of possessing a firearm in a public place.  He was taken to hospital suffering from minor injuries and is now in police custody.

icSurrey, 2 December 2004

Surrey police have issued a warning to teenage owners of imitation and replica guns about the dangers of being shot by armed police officers.  Two teenagers were arrested following an incident in Stanwell after distressed members of the public reported sightings of a sniper.  Two BB rifles and a pistol were confiscated.

News and Star, 2 December 2004

A 13-year-old boy from Dudley needed emergency surgery to save his sight after being shot in the eye by a 7-year-old brandishing a ball-bearing gun.  He is now back at school after spending several days in hospital.

Hartlepool Today, 2 December 2004

A double-barrelled shotgun, ammunition and an air rifle were recovered by police when they uncovered a cannabis farm in Hartlepool.  Two men were arrested and released on bail.

BBC, 1 December 2004

A man was shot outside his home in Rochester after struggling with another man.  Police believe that the attack was not random.  The victim underwent surgery in hospital and was under armed guard.  A man has been charged with a firearms offence (BBC, 4 December 2004).

Oldham Advertiser, 1 December 2004

The parents of a naval engineer have blamed the police for stopping them trying to talk their son out of committing suicide.  Their son shot himself with an air rifle at Culdrose naval airbase in Cornwall in November 2003.

PA News, 1 December 2004 *

Lance Corporal James Piotrowski, a Iraq war veteran, was handed over to the Royal Military Police after he'd gone missing from Wellington Barracks in London at the time of the theft of an SA-80 rifle.  He had been detained in Birmingham on suspicion of firearms offences.  He later escaped from custody (Scotland on Sunday, 23 January 2005).  In April 2006 he was jailed for seven years and four months (see Incidents).

Huddersfield Daily Examiner, 1 December 2004

Terence Roberts has pleaded guilty to charges of possessing a firearm with intent to cause fear of violence and affray following an incident at his Rawthorpe home in May.  Roberts had a ball-bearing pistol during a stand-off lasting several hours involving police, fire and ambulance crews.

BBC, 30 November 2004

Thirty-six rifles and shotguns worth £20,000 have been stolen from a gun shop in Banbury.  Two men forced the door and loaded the weapons into a car.

Avon and Somerset Constabulary, 29 November 2004

Police in Somerset East have issued a press release reminding youngsters and their parents about the dangers of imitation firearms, including BB guns.  Over the weekend there had been a number of reported incidents involving imitation guns, the majority of which took place in the Yeovil area.  Two boys, aged 11 and 13, were arrested in Yeovil for possession of an imitation firearm with intent to cause alarm and distress.  The owner of the shop from which the boys bought the guns for 99p has now banned the sale of toy guns to children under 16 (BBC, 3 December 2004).

Waltham Forest Guardian, 29 November 2004

A teenager found staggering down a street in Chingford had a gunshot wound in his leg.  His attackers ran off after he was shot.   He was released from hospital after treatment.

Evening Chronicle (Newcastle), 27 November 2004

Fifteen paintball guns have been stolen in a raid on paintballing premises in Blagdon, near Cramlington.  The thieves took other items.

Evening Gazette (Middlesbrough), 27 November 2004

A 15-year-old boy has admitted a charge of unlawful wounding after an incident in which a 13-year-old girl was shot with a loaded air pistol.  The pellet entered her face close to her eye.  The boy was clearer of deliberate shooting as the jury at Teesside Crown Centre accepted his plea that he did not know the air pistol was loaded and would not have pulled the trigger if he had known.

News & Star, 27 November 2004

Joseph Sowerby was jailed for six years after he pointed an antique musket at a barmaid during a robbery at a pub in Workington.  He'd bought the imitation gun for £25 half an hour before.

icCoventry, 27 July 2004

Edward Carlo Garofano was sentenced to five years in prison after setting off a massive security scare at Coventry Airport in July 2004.  Police had found a gun, which had one bullet in the chamber in a bag strapped around his waist after he'd given a lift to four air passengers.  A Walther PPK semi-automatic pistol was discovered in the car, and police found a number of other weapons at his home.  Garofano had a fascination with guns and knives and said he manufactured weapons at home.  He had first joined a gun club when he was 17 and had held a licence since he was 21.  He admitted a eight charges of possessing weapons and ammunition and one charge of having a firearm in a public place.

South London Press, 26 November 2004

A gunman held a pistol to a man's head during an attack on a housing estate in Walworth.  The victim was forced to knell down and hand over his cash.

Telegraph, 26 November 2004

James Hewitt was refused the return of his gun licences which had been revoked by police after he had been arrested for cocaine possession.  A search of his Chelsea home had revealed a disassembled 16-bore shotgun lying on the living room floor when it should have been locked in a metal gun cabinet.  At the time of the arrest Hewitt had drunk four bottles of wine.

BBC, 26 November 2004

A man has been charged with attempted murder after a shooting outside a pub in the village of Rocester in Staffordshire.

Northampton Today, 25 November 2004

A 14-year-old boy was fighting for his life after suffering a gunshot wound at his home in Quinton, Northamptonshire.  It is believed that the injury was sustained with an air weapon.

Peterborough Today, 24 November 2004

A worker with the homeless had a gun pointed to his neck at a day care centre in Peterborough.  The victim, a duty manager was dealing with a man whom he believed to be "off his head on drugs and alcohol" when the incident occurred.  The police have been criticised for responding too slowly to an SOS call.  The assailant had been taken away by his girlfriend before the police arrived.  Police believed that a toy gun was involved.  Terence Bromley later pleaded guilty to trespassing in a building with an imitation gun (Peterborough Today, 25 January 2005).

icSouthLondon, 23 November 2004

Junior Weir was caught with a Glock self-loading pistol in his car after a stop and search by police in Tulse Hill.  He admitted one charge of possession of a prohibited firearm, one of possessing cannabis and one of burglary.  He was jailed for four years.

Waltham Forest Guardian, 23 November 2004

The paper reported that imitation firearms that could be mistaken for the real thing were being sold from a toy stall in Walthamstow market.  One, a Lorcin M38-9A, was purchased by the reporter and was difficult to distinguish from the real thing.  The paper has now launched a campaign Guns R4 Losers to petition Parliament to get the sale of such guns banned (see Other Campaigns).

icCoventry, 22 November 2004

Damien Jacques, 14, from Bulkington has been given an anti-social behaviour order which includes banning him from possessing a toy gun.  Among the actions taken into account in imposing the Asbo was his possession of a BB gun.  Villagers had been subjected to harassment, alarm and distress.

Derby Evening Telegraph, 22 November 2004

A house in Derby was surrounded for two hours after a man allegedly fired an air rifle and refused to hand over the weapon.  A man was arrested.  The incident happened when environmental health workers from Derby City Council were clearing a large pile of rubbish from the doorstep of the house.

BBC, 22 November 2004

Hampshire Police are the latest to report the seizure of guns illegally bought over the internet.  After raids on 12 addresses across Hampshire and the Isle of Wight 12 handguns, three long barrelled guns, one stun gun and over 500 rounds of blank ammunition were seized.

PA News, 22 November 2004 *

A nightclub doorman was shot dead outside the club in Birmingham city centre.  Two other employees remained in a serious, but stable condition.  A 19-year-old man has been arrested and was being held in custody.  Police chiefs have revealed that they want to shut down the nightclub (Evening Mail, 6 December 2004)  Six men have been convicted of murder and jailed for life (see December 2005 Incidents).

PA News, 19 November 2004

A gang of six armed robbers who posed as "Flying Squad" police during a raid on a warehouse at Heathrow Airport in January 2004 were sentenced to a total of 71 years in jail.  During the raid one woman had a loaded gun pressed to her neck.  Two of men were convicted on firearms charges.

PA News, 19 November 2004

Police are hunting for a man who raided a betting shop in Exeter.  He was brandishing a gun at staff who handed cash to him. 

Manchester News, 18 November 2004

Police across Britain are on a major alert after guns disguised as key fobs and mobile phones were smuggled into the country.  The weapons, which were probably made in Poland, came to light when a man, arrested in Manchester for driving offences, was found to have a double barrelled gun disguised as a key fob.  It was four inches long and an inch wide and loaded with two 6.35 calibre cartridges.  Junior Collins was jailed for six-and-a-half years.

Manchester News, 18 November 2004

Paul Bennett, a convicted robber, was given an anti-social order after four children at a primary school in Moss Side said they had seen him outside their school with what was described as a black gun and a knife.

Streatham Post, 18 November 2004

Alex Okuwa has appeared in court charged with murder.  The male victim was shot dead during a disturbance in West Norwood.

Eastern Daily Press, 18 November 2004

Phillip Emms, who 'petrified' his neighbours in Aylsham by threatening them with a BB gun after a dispute over barking dogs, has been jailed for six months.  He had admitted possessing an imitation gun.  It was described as looking like a shotgun.

Huddersfield Daily Examiner, 18 November 2004

A bus driver was robbed after being threatened with a handgun in Meltham.  After the robbery he had to be taken to hospital suffering from chest pains.  It was the latest of a series of attacks on buses in the village, including a possible airgun attack in which four windows were smashed.  The First Bus company has imposed a night-time curfew on buses going on to the Broadlands estate in Meltham.

East Anglian Daily Times, 17 November 2004

A taxi driver was robbed by two men, one of whom was brandishing a gun when he stopped to pick up a passenger in Silver End, Essex.  The men stole £40 and the keys to the car.

BBC, 17 November 2004

Following a shooting at a pub in Chorlton, south Manchester, in which a man was shot in the stomach, three men and one woman have been arrested and released on police bail.

Croydon Guardian, 17 November 2004

Dele Ajibola faces jail after threatening neighbours in Shirley, including a young boy, with an imitation pistol in an argument over parking.  He was found guilty with possessing a firearm with intent to cause fear and warned by the judge that a prison sentence was inevitable.

icCoventry, 17 November 2004

Amaan Hassan, who aimed an imitation gun at two police officers, has been jailed for two-and-a-half years.  He was drunk at the time of the offence in Whitley.  The judge rejected his claim that he had no intention of hurting anyone and only had the gun for a bit of fun by saying that "People who possess imitation firearms commit a serious offence."

Journal (Newcastle), 16 November 2004

A masked gunman tried to rob an amusement arcade in Gateshead.

BBC, 16 November 2004

Two men are being sought after they shot at a house in a residential neighbourhood of Corby.  The door was damaged.  The men made off on a motorbike.

PA News, 16 November 2004

Two members of a gun club, the Morecambe Rifle and Pistol Club, were convicted at the Old Bailey after a murder weapon had been found on an Irish river bed.  The reactivated self-loading pistol had been used in the shooting of a man.  It was alleged that James Greenwood reactivated the CZ Model 75 9mm pistol, which had been officially deactivated.  Both he and Robert Naylor were also convicted of manufacturing sub-machine guns for use by members of the criminal underworld.  A third man was cleared of charges relating to the possession of firearms and ammunition.

Yorkshire Post, 16 November 2004

A memorial to Emily Brontë in Scarborough has been restored after sea air and vandalism had taken their toll.  Amongst other things, damage had been caused by the stone memorial being used as an airgun target.

BBC, 16 November 2004

A man died after being shot in the eye with an air rifle at a flat in Castleford.  Police have charged a 20-year-old man with manslaughter.  (See March 2005 incidents).

BBC, 15 November 2004

Two men, armed with a gun and hammer, forced their way into a casino in Nottingham, threatened staff and escaped with what is thought to be a substantial amount of cash.

National Newspapers, 15 November 2004

After an incident which highlights the difficulties faced by all police forces caused by the proliferation of imitation guns, Rory Casey, 13, was given an absolute discharge: he'd been spotted on CCTV pointing a plastic gun at flats in Newcastle.  An armed response team had to be called in when he was seen shining the gun's laser sight on a wall.  He had won the gun at the Hoppings fair.

Manchester Evening News, 15 November 2004

A man died in hospital after he was shot in the back whilst visiting relatives at a block of flats in Rochdale.  A local man has been arrested on suspicion of murder (Rochdale Observer, 17 November 2004).  Mohammed Aslam pleaded guilty to manslaughter and was jailed for five years.  A second man admitted helping the offender (BBC, 17 May 2005).

This is Local London, 15 November 2004

A man burnt to death in his car after he reversed into another vehicle while being shot at in Willesden, north London.  He had been parked for around half an hour when he was shot.  A post mortem found the victim died from gun shot wounds and severe burns.

Sunday Mercury (Birmingham), 14 November 2004

The paper reported that nurses at Queen Elizabeth Psychiatric Hospital in Edgbaston had to wrestle a gun from a patient.  Patients are not searched before they are admitted to wards.

Evening News (Norwich), 13 November 2004

A 12-year-old schoolgirl was shot in the leg whilst talking to a friend outside a school in Norwich.  Police believe an air weapon was used.

BBC, 13 November 2004

Firearms and suspected stolen goods were seized as part of a police crackdown on burglaries in Dorset. House and shops were searched in Poole and Bournemouth.

BBC, 13 November 2004

A man found dead with gunshot wounds at a house in Croxteth died before he could be taken to hospital.  Police are now involved in a murder investigation

BBC, 13 November 2004

A man was arrested after two people were shot with a BB gun in Manchester city centre.  One of the victims suffered minor eye injuries after being shot in a bar; the other victim was shot in the face in a restaurant.

PA News, 12 November 2004

Thames Valley Police were questioning seven people after a series of raids in which guns and hand grenades were seized.  Among the weapons seized were more than 30 handguns and imitation firearms.  Police believe the guns had been bought over the internet.  The addresses visited were in southern Buckinghamshire, Milton Keynes, northern Oxfordshire, Oxford, Reading, Slough, and both east and west Berkshire.

icCheshire, 12 November 2004

Six men were arrested across Merseyside after a series of raids to seize illegal firearms.  Blank-firing guns, which can be converted to fire live bullets, were being sold over the internet.  The men charged were from Norris Green, Wallasey, Tranmere and Birkenhead.

High&I, 12 November 2004

A retailer who was selling realistic fake guns at a stall outside Finsbury Park tube station has been persuaded to remove them and send them back to the suppliers after complaints to trading standards officers, the local MP and Friends of Finsbury Park.  Community beat police officers also spoke to the owners after packaging from the pistols was found strewn on the street: they were concerned that if the guns were being unwrapped on the street then they were being carried and used openly.

Liverpool Echo, 12 November 2004

Police were investigating a gangland-style attack at the City Quay apartments in Liverpool after gun blasts were heard and a van was driven into the complex and set on fire.  Police confirmed that a number of gun shells had been found.

Evening Standard, 12 November 2004

A city businessman was told that he would be killed unless he handed over his phone and wallet to the driver of an unlicensed minicab and another man, who had got into the car after the driver went to a council estate near Old Street in the City of London where the victim had got into the cab.  The second man had claimed he had a gun.  The robbers tried to drain the victim's accounts of cash after driving around to cash machines.

Sun, 10 November 2004

Anthony Gatenby has been found guilty of harassing a school headmaster after Hadyn Road Primary School in Sherwood had to be shut down four times.  The headmaster received a number of unsigned emails which included threats to shoot him and to carry out a Dunblane-style school massacre.  When Gatenby was arrested police confiscated a ball-bearing gun, swords and martial arts weapons.  He has been banned from entering the school premises for two years and faces prison if he breaks the restraining order (BBC, 13 December 2004)

Tameside Advertiser, 10 November 2004

A man was shot four times at close range by a masked gunman in a busy pub in Haughton Green.  The victim underwent surgery in hospital and was described as being in a serious but stable condition.

BBC, 7 November 2004

A 13-year-old boy was being treated in hospital for injuries to his arms and face after a shooting incident in Haverhill.  Police recovered a shotgun.  Two other 13-year-old boys were released on police bail.  A 14-year-old boy is to appear in court charged with GBH (East Anglian Daily Times, 6 May 2005).   A teenager has been found guilty of unlawfully and maliciously inflicting grievous bodily harm after shooting his cousin in the face (see February 2006 Incidents).

BBC, 7 November 2004

Money was stolen from a filling station in Wellington, Somerset, by a man claiming to have a gun in his bag.

BBC, 6 November 2004

A man suspected of having a sawn-off shotgun in a pub in Blackpool was shot with police baton rounds after armed police challenged him to stop.

BBC, 6 November 2004

A man was charged after an alleged firearms incident in Chippenham.  A large area of the town had to be sealed of as police dealt with the incident.

Derby Evening Telegraph, 5 November 2004

A man suffered a pellet wound in his leg after being shot whilst walking home from a pub in Derby.

Telegraph, 5 November 2004

More than 100 guns were seized, and 37 people arrested in a Metropolitan Police operation (Operation Bembridge) to crack down on illegal weapons being sold over the internet.  A total of 47 homes in London were raided.  The weapons recovered included three machine guns, 86 handguns,10 rifles, seven shotguns and 13 stun guns.  The handguns included Glock, Beretta and Walther PPK 9mm replica guns which could have been converted to fire live ammunition.

Pickering News Online, 5 November 2004

Three men, from Thirsk, Richmond and Selby, were arrested by North Yorkshire Police Firearms Support Unit and dealt with as part of a national clamp-down on the sale of guns via the internet, particularly replica guns of a type that can quickly and easily be converted to fire live rounds and stun guns.

icCoventry, 5 November 2004

A couple from Kenilworth were shocked to discover that someone had fired an airgun at the home.  The shot appeared to have been fired from an alleyway at the back of the house.

Yorkshire Post, 5 November 2004

A shotgun was fired through the door of a flat in Harrogate.  The occupant went to open the door of the flat but concerned for his safety he stepped away as the shotgun was discharged.  Four men have been arrested and released on bail.

Express and Star, 4 November 2004

Pensioners on two Stourbridge estates are being terrorised by vandals who throw bricks and fire airgun pellets at their homes.

icSurrey, 4 November 2004 *

Armed police units searched the High Street in Reigate after a traffic warden was threatened with a pistol.  A man later handed himself to police.  An imitation plastic handgun, which police believe may be connected to the incidents, was found the next day.  A man has bee found guilty of possession of an imitation firearm with intent to cause fear of violence (icSurrey, 17 November 2005 - see Incidents).

Guardian, 3 November 2004

Six people were arrested on suspicion of wounding after a teenager was shot with an air rifle in Kensington, Merseyside.

Guardian, 2 November 2004

Terry Marriott was jailed for 20 years for the attempted murder of his landlord.  His victim was left paralysed after being shot with a sawn-off shotgun in Northampton in November 2003.

Asian News, 1 November 2004

Terrence Ward was jailed for two years after brandishing what appeared to be a Magnum gun at a bus driver in Bury and subjecting him to racist abuse.  The gun was a cigarette lighter, and Ward was charged with possession of an imitation weapon.

BBC, 30 October 2004

Surrey Police are investigating the theft of twelve replica guns, including handguns and a de-activated machine gun, from a shed in Guildford.

Reading Evening Post, 29 October 2004

Three men, Jamie Miell, Garri Collins and Mark Davies, were sentenced to a total of 41 years for a spree of 21 robberies in seven weeks.  The gang wore Saddam Hussein masks or balaclavas and armed themselves with replica guns, baseball bats and knives.  In one raid on Woodcote sub-post office they held an airgun to the head of a customer.  As the paper says: "The firearm was effectively false.  His terror was not."

PA News, 28 October 2004

Paul Smith, convicted of killing a 10-year-old child by smothering her at a Christmas party, had previously threatened a teenage friend with his air rifle before tying her up, gagging her and bundling her into the boot of his father's car.  The extent of his previous history of violence against young girls was not revealed until after his conviction.  Smith, whose father admitted his son had a fiery temper, was never prosecuted for this and other offences as both his victims were close family friends who decided not to press charges.

BBC, 27 October 2004

Armed police sealed off a street in Gloucester after reports of a man with a gun.  A 17-year-old was arrested carrying a pellet-firing BB gun.

icCoventry, 27 October 2004

A man armed with a gun robbed a security guard delivering cash to a bank in Cheylesmore.  This was the fifth gunpoint robbery in Coventry in October.

BBC, 27 October 2004

Sixteen pedestrians were shot with what the police believe was an air rifle whilst walking in West Bromwich.  A man is his 20s was later arrested.  Police are investigating whether there is a link to incidents the previous day in Smethwick (see below).

BBC, 26 October 2004

One passenger was injured when several shots were fired at three buses travelling along the same road in Smethwick.    It is believed that the weapon was a pellet gun.

South London Press, 26 October 2004

Six firearms were recovered during a massive police operation against organised crime in Lewisham.  Operation Vezere, which was based in the Millennium Dome, involved raids on local premises for firearms and drugs, also resulted in the recovery of thousands of pounds worth of drugs, as well as cash and stolen goods.  Eleven people have been charged with drug, immigration and firearm offences (South London Press, 29 October 2004)

BBC, 25 October 2004

Two men entered a Co-op store in Cambridge and threatened staff with what appeared to be a gun.  It was not clear at the time of the report if any money was stolen.

Leeds Today, 23 October 2004

A four-year-old boy from North Hull was rushed to hospital after he was shot with a ball-bearing gun.  He could have lost an eye in the attack after the pellet hit him in his open eye.  Humberside Police suggested that a teenage boy fired the gun after threatening the boys brother.

News & Star, 22 October 2004

Armed police went to a bed and breakfast after a man twice fired a gun at Workington harbour.  The weapon turned out to be an air rifle that had been bought the day before in a local shop for £80.  Robert Merner decided to 'show it off' after drinking at a pub.  He was put on a 12-month community rehabilitation order and told to pay £43 towards prosecution costs.  The gun and pellets will be destroyed.

Surrey Mirror, 21 October 2004

An editorial comments on attacks on traffic wardens employed by Reigate and Banstead Borough Council.  A ball-bearing gun was fired in one attack.

Journal (Newcastle), 20 October 2004

A 13-year-old boy staggered bleeding through the backdoor of his home in Great Lumley near Chester-le-Street after being shot in the back with an air rifle.  He had to undergo a spine operation.  The boy was taking the family dog for a walk at the time of the incident

Huddersfield Daily Examiner, 20 October 2004

Police officers hit out after three incidents where armed officers tackled people seen with guns which turned out to be fake.  During one incident, Huddersfield railway station was evacuated after a man was seen on a train with a gun - he was arrested for being in possession of a ball-bearing gun.  Three men were arrested in Bradford after pointing a plastic rifle at a house in Fagley.  A man was arrested in Leeds city centre after threatening people with a toy gun.

Liverpool Echo, 20 October 2004

A high-powered BB gun was among weapons seized by Merseyside police during raids on 14 addresses in Bootle, Waterloo and Seaforth in an operation to close the cocaine and heroin supply network.

Evening Chronicle (Newcastle), 19 October 2004

David Houlsby, a teenager from South Shields, admitted possessing an imitation firearm with intent, carrying a firearm in public and possessing a firearm while prohibited following an incident in which he terrorised two women by brandishing a gun-shaped cigarette lighter.

South London Press, 19 October 2004 *

Oral Lattibeaudire, one of two men charged with kidnapping a man near Loughborough Junction, south London, was also charged with possession of a firearm while committing a first schedule offence and using a firearm while resisting arrest.  He received a 20-year jail sentence (see August 2005 incidents).

South London Press, 19 October 2004

A gunman in a car opened fire on another car when the two cars drew level in Mitcham Lane, south London.

Evening Post (Nottingham), 18 October 2004

Two men threatened security guards with a handgun during a robbery at a garage in Daybrook.  One of the guards was hit with the pistol.

BBC, 18 October 2004

A man appeared in court, charged with attempted murder, following the shooting of a security guard in the stomach outside a bank in Palmers Green, north London.  He also faced charges of possessing a firearm with intent to endanger life and possession of a firearm and ammunition without a certificate.

BBC, 18 October 2004

A woman was injured in a drive-by shooting as she walked down the High Street in Westerham.  She was injured in the leg and was said to be in a stable condition.  The husband of the woman's friend was hit in the arm by the first shot from the car.  The car then reversed and another two or three shots were fired at the woman.

East Anglian Daily Times, 18 October 2004

A teenager was arrested after pointing an imitation gun at a passing police car in Colchester.  An armed response team was sent to the scene, although the boy was arrested by unarmed police when they received information that the weapon was a BB gun.

Evening Post (Nottingham), 18 October 2004

A website selling potentially lethal guns has been shut down after a raid by police from the anti-gun unit Operation Stealth.  A 20-year-old was arrested and bailed in connection with alleged firearms offences.  The Nottingham  premises raided were those of Guns2thugs.  Police seized a stash of replica handguns that could be converted to fire bullets.

Shropshire Star, 16 October 2004

Gary Moore was jailed for life are a string of robberies across the country.  Among those raided were a Shrewsbury bookmakers where several members of staff were threatened with a gun.

News & Star, 16 October 2004

After an incident at Trinity School in Carlisle, the headmaster has sought to calm the fears of parents.  A 13-year-old pupil was shot with a BB gun in the school grounds, the plastic pellet hitting him just below the eye.  A teacher was also hit but escaped injury.  The headmaster believes it to have been an isolated incident.  A teenager has been arrested and released on bail.

News & Star, 16 October 2004

Robert Logan admitted two public order offences, two counts of unlawfully possession an air weapon and one of having an air weapon in a public place after incidents in Workington.  He threatened to shoot his dog inside a shop, causing an elderly customer to pass out, and shot a pellet from his air rifle towards a teenage boy.  Logan appeared to be drunk at the time.  He was placed under the supervision of the probation service for two years and told to tackle his alcohol problem or face the possibility of going to jail (News & Star, 14 December 2004)

BBC, 15 October 2004

Edwin Hoskins was jailed for seven years for attempting to kill his neighbour at Blacknor Fort, a disused military base on Portland, over a land dispute.  Hoskins pointed a double-barrelled shotgun at his victim, who survived the blast despite being hit in the stomach.

North-West Evening Mail, 14 October 2004

A teenager brandishing an air rifle shot a woman in the neck before she tackled him and he ran off.  The incident occurred as she was leaving her offices in Ulverston.

Leigh Today, 14 October 2004

A 12-year-old boy was almost blinded when he was shot in the face with an airgun.  He was facing delicate surgery to remove a piece of metal.  Police describe the close-range attack, which took place in Westwell Park in Leigh, as calculating.

BBC, 14 October 2004 *

A man was in a critical condition in hospital after being shot in Dagenham.  He was approached by a man on foot who fired a single shot into his neck and ran off.  Two men, a detective constable and a private investigator, have been arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to murder (This is London, 29 October 2004).   The victim died in hospital in June 2005 and his death is now being treated as murder (Barking & Dagenham Recorder, 30 June 2005).  Two men are on trial for murder and a court has heard that the victim died as a result of a contract killing set up by his wife and stepdaughter (BBC, 8 May 2008; BBC, 19 February 2009).

Evening Post (Nottingham), 13 October 2004

A ball-bearing gun was found hidden in a litter bin in Bingham, Nottinghamshire.  A supervisor from Rushcliffe Borough Council said "What on earth are people thinking of disposing of guns in such a stupid fashion?".  The gun was being passed on to the police who would undertake a forensic examination and then melt it down.

This is London, 13 October 2004

Military-obsessed Norman Phillips from Sheerness was jailed for two years after an arsenal of weapons was found at his home.  Police found firearms, ammunition and CS gas.

News & Star, 13 October 2004

An 8-year-old boy was the victim of an attack with a ball-bearing gun or possibly a paintball gun.   He was shot three times and suffered painful bruises from hits to the back and chest.  His sister, who was delivering papers on the Botchbery Estate in Carlisle at the time of the attack was hit once.  Their mother is calling for airguns and similar weapons to be banned (Cumbria online, 15 October, 2004).

National Newspapers, 12 October 2004 *

In a gun attack in Hackney, two men were seriously injured and an 18-month baby girl suffered a minor gunshot wound to her leg.  A gunman fired shots into a car in which the victims were travelling.  The shooting is being investigated by officers from Operation Trident.  Michael Nelson was later jailed for 25 years for the attempted murder of four people, Dwight Charlton and Horace Gordon were each jailed for 16 years.  Up to 15 bullets had been fired into the car (BBC, 15 June 2005).

icCroydon, 12 October 2004

A man was shot in the leg following a car accident in the centre of Croydon.  Police say he was chased and shot after laughing at a driver involved in a minor prang.

BBC, 11 October 2004

A businessman is was critically ill in hospital after being shot on the doorstep of his family home in Ilford.  The shooting is being investigated by officers from Operation Trident.

BBC, 11 October 2004

Two masked robbers wielding a gun and a knife stole bags of money from a supermarket in Knaphill, Surrey.

National Newspapers, 10 October 2004 *

The death of 14-year-old Danielle Beccan, who was returning from a evening out at Nottingham's Goose Fair, became national news and was followed by a number of articles about gun crime in Britain and the high incidence of gun violence in the St Ann's area of Nottingham.  Danielle was killed when shots were fired from a gold-coloured car.  She was hit in the abdomen and died later in hospital.  Two men, Junior Andrews and Mark Ontonio Kelly, both from Nottingham have been charged with the murder (Telegraph, 23 October 2004).  Their trial began in September 2005 (Times, 7 September 2005), both were found guilty and given life sentences (see October 2005 Incidents).

BBC, 9 October 2004

An air rifle and an air pistol were among weapons stolen from a house in Barrow.

Leigh Today, 8 October 2004

School children in a bus being driven through Golborne were subjected to attacks by snipers using air rifles on two consecutive days.  Pellets were fired through windows, shattering glass and narrowly missing the children.  The pupils were being taken from a high school in Newton-le-Willows to Leigh.

Independent, 8 October 2004

A north London policeman was being questioned after being arrested and charged with firearms offences and attempting to pervert the course of justice.  It is alleged that he deliberately shot himself in the stomach to fake an attack in December 2002.  He claimed to have been attacked after approaching a car at Highbury Corner.  A handgun was found at the scene.

BBC, 8 October 2004

A youth was arrested in Gloucester are police received reports of an airgun being fired at cars from an upstairs window.

BBC, 7 October 2004

A man who twice fired an air pistol at a cyclist had his sentence reduced in the Criminal Appeal Court because the original judge did not give credit to the fact that Richard Smith, from Lincoln, suffers from Asperger's Syndrome.  In October 2003 he had fired at a milkman with a ball bearing air pistol.  His sentence was cut from 33-months to two years.

Independent, 7 October 2004

Aaron Blinkho, 14, was threatened by magistrates with imprisonment under the terms of an anti-social behaviour order (Asbo).  He had repeatedly targeted a Turkish family in Newton Heath, Manchester, during a nine-month period including attacking them with a ball-bearing gun.

Evening Mail (Birmingham), 7 October 2004

Four men were on trial in Birmingham for the gangland style execution in which the teenage victim was shot dead in a street in Smethwick in August 2003.

This is London, 7 October 2004

Dwayne Coleman was jailed for life, with a minimum of 22 years before parole, after being convicted of murder and conspiracy to rob.  Coleman shot his victim dead with a single bullet to his heart at his front door in Forest Gate in 2002.

icEssex, 7 October 2004

Keith Hayhow, who had received a nine year sentence for wounding with intent, failed to win a reduction in his jail term at London's Court of Appeal.  His victim had accidentally dropped his girlfriend's baby outside Basildon Hospital.  After an argument, Hayhow left and returned with a shotgun which he fired from a car.  His victim was shot in the shoulder.  Hayhow's half-brother, Shay Backhurst, who was also in the car, was jailed for seven years.

Whitehaven News, 7 October 2004

Two men were charged with having a loaded air weapon in a public place in Whitehaven.

Ellesmere Port Pioneer, 6 October 2004

A week-long blitz which resulted in almost 50 arrests yielded an arsenal of weapons including an air rifle and BB guns from one home.  Operation Ancient was targeted at the criminal network in Ellesmere Port.

Morecambe Today, 6 October 2004

A newsagent in the Bare area of Morecambe stared out a masked gunman who appeared not to know how to operate the gun.  The man left empty-handed.

Evening Chronicle (Newcastle), 4 October 2004

Armed police were called to an estate in Wallsend after reports that a man was firing a gun.  An 18-year-old was arrested, and an air pistol, airgun and ammunition were recovered.

BBC, 4 October 2004

A taxi cab window was shattered when its driver was shot at by a man with an airgun in Rectory Farm, Northampton.  The attacker was one of a group of people who made off leaving the driver shaken but uninjured.

BBC, 4 October 2004

A man leaving the Deighton Centre in Huddersfield was approached by a man with a handgun and shot once in the buttocks.

News & Star, 3 October 2004

In a second recent airgun attack in Carlisle a firefighter was shot while on duty.

BBC, 2 October 2004

A bus driver handed over cash, a mobile phone and a blue bag containing ticket rolls when he was robbed at gunpoint in Telford.

BBC, 2 October 2004 *

Two men died and another was seriously injured in a shooting at a nightclub in Croydon.  It was later reported that one of the victims was a doorman who may have tried to stop the gunman from fleeing the nightclub.  The gunman smashed a glass door panel to escape.  Two men were arrested in connection with the shooting which is being investigated by officers from the Met's Operation Trident.  Two weeks later less than a third of the 100 or more people believed to have been at the club at the time had come forward (Croydon Guardian, 18 October 2004).  Nine men are facing trial in Bristol in connection with the Croydon murders as well as a double shooting in Bristol an hour later (see below) (ic Croydon, 14 April 2006).

BBC, 2 October 2004 *

Two women were shot and dumped outside a Bristol police station after being shot in a car in St George, Bristol.  One of the victims had received serious head injuries.  Five men have appeared in court in relation to this incident (PA News, 12 January 2005).  In a second incident in Bristol, gun shots were heard in St Paul's.  A man hailed a car and was taken to hospital with gunshot wounds.  Nine men are facing trial in Bristol in connection with a double murder in Croydon (see above) as well as the double shooting in Bristol an hour later (ic Croydon, 14 April 2006).

BBC, 2 October 2004

Five people were arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to commit violent disorder after shots were fired in Lincoln.

BBC, 1 October 2004

Two men, Maurice Miller and Nebra Bennett, were jailed for life for shooting dead a woman as she sat in her sports car in a street in Tottenham.  Pauline Peart, who was murdered in March 2003, did not know her killers.  They may have been aiming at a friend who was with her in the car.  The weapon used was a BBM blank-firing handgun which had been converted to enable it to fire live rounds.  A Scotland Yard spokesman said that 70% of firearms offences investigated by Operation Trident involved replica guns which had been converted to fire live ammunition.

Yorkshire Post, 30 September 2004 *

Two men have been arrested on suspicion of murder after a man was found in his car fatally shot near his home in Bradford Moor.

Liverpool Echo, 30 September 2004

Stephen Bennett was found guilty of attempting to murder two brothers and possessing a firearm.  He had tried to shoot the men dead with a handgun in a street in Everton.  He was jailed for 14 years for attempted murder, a five year sentence for possessing a gun to be served concurrently.

News & Star, 30 September 2004

Four schoolchildren were the target of a drive-by airgun attack at a Carlisle skate park.  A 31-year-old man was hit in the arm.

ic Birmingham, 30 September 2004

Ambulance service bosses described how a paramedic had a handgun held to his head as he struggled to treat a badly injured man in Birmingham city centre.  This was one example of an escalating number of attacks on 999 staff.

BBC, 30 September 2004

A man wielding a black handgun held up a post office in Chatham and made off with about £3000.

BBC, 30 September 2004

Stolen property and six guns were found during an operation by Avon and Somerset Police aimed at dangerous and disqualified drivers.

National Newspapers, 29 September 2004

Verdicts of unlawful killing were recorded on Julia and William Pemberton who were killed by Alan Pemberton at their home in Hermitage, Berkshire in November 2003.  After shooting his wife and son with a shotgun, Pemberton shot himself.  He had removed the shotgun from his new girlfriend's gun cabinet where she kept it for clay shooting.

Eastern Daily Press, 29 September 2004

A family feud resulted in a man shooting his young cousin in the head with an air rifle.  The 17-year-old victim needed surgery to remove the pellet.  The perpetrator, from Tibenham, was given an 18-month jail sentence suspended for two years.

BBC, 29 September 2004

Armed police were called to a house in Sheffield after reports of a man brandishing a gun.  Two firearms, thought to be air weapons, were found at the property.  Two people, a man and a woman, were arrested on suspicion of making threats to kill.

icCoventry, 29 September 2004

A man was arrested outside a pub in Stratford-upon-Avon after reports that a drinker was in possession of a firearm.  He had been seen with what looked like a black handgun in his pocket.  He was arrested on suspicion of possession of an imitation firearm in a public place.

icBirmingham, 29 September 2004

A masked man appeared from behind a tree in a park in Kidderminster and threatened two men with a sawn-off shotgun.

Evening Chronicle (Newcastle), 29 September 2004

A boy was shot in the chest with a BB gun outside a pizza shop in Walker.

Rochdale Observer, 28 September 2004

A policeman patrolling near a car park in Castleton saw a 17-year-old boy aiming a gun at another person.  The gun was a realistic looking fake sub-machine gun with details such as infra-red sight, separate munition barrel and detachable magazine.  The gun fired plastic ball bearings and had been bought for £20 by the boy's mother.   He was arrested under the Firearms Act and released with a caution.  His detail will be kept on police files for 10 years.

BBC, 27 September 2004

A man appeared before magistrates charged with firearms offences.  He was charged with threatening police with a handgun and making threats to kill two women at this home in Madron, Cornwall.

Derby Evening Telegraph, 27 September 2004

A masked man who robbed a shop in Denby is believed to have been armed with a sawn-off shotgun.  He threatened staff and demanded money from the till.

Sheffield Today, 24 September 2004

A 13-year-old boy from Swallownest was nearly blinded after he was shot in the eye with a BB gun.  He suffered a badly cut eyeball and blood clots to the back of his eye.  Rotherham Police revealed that there had been 80 BB incidents in the previous 16 weeks.

Huddersfield Daily Examiner, 24 September 2004

Raiders armed with a gun were foiled by a security guard as they tried to rob a security van at a service station in Shepley.

South London Press, 24 September 2004

A man was shot in the leg close to his front door in Tulse Hill when a gang robbed him of his mobile phone.

PA News, 24 September 2004 *

A 12-year-old boy who was walking a dog with his father close to a golf course near Castleford was shot and critically injured.  He sustained a gunshot wound to his head.  The area is popular with lampers, nightime hunters who use bright lights to spot prey.  The boy and his father had been distracted by a bright light just before he was shot.  An 18-year-old was later arrested for questioning (Sunday Telegraph, 26 September 2004).  Three other men have been arrested on suspicion of attempting to pervert the course of justice (BBC, 27 September 2004).   The case came to court in June 2005 (see Incidents)

Sunderland Echo, 23 September 2004

Two brothers who raided a shop and pointed an imitation handgun in the face of a worker have both been jailed for six years.  There was considerable relief among the residents of Roker who had been "plagued" by the two men.

Streatham Guardian, 23 September 2004

A 65-year-old who was shot by a robber hit his attacker with his walking stick.  The victim was working in a post office in Dulwich when two men burst into the shop and demanded money.  He had to have his spleen removed.

Banbury Guardian, 23 September 2004

A 17-year-old victim of an airgun attack was recovering from a five-hour operation to remove a pellet from her face.  She was shot while walking with her boyfriend in Milcombe, Banbury.

Derby Evening Telegraph, 22 September 2004

A 10-year-old girl was shot in the stomach after a boy pulled out a ball-bearing gun in a junior school playground in Chaddesden.  Although unhurt the girl was left very shocked.

PA News, 22 September 2004

A bank manager, his wife and two daughters were kidnapped at gunpoint from their home in Leigh.  They were held overnight after which the manager was forced to open his branch in Manchester from which the raiders stole a "substantial amount" of cash.

PA News, 22 September 2004

Armed police officers were called to a barn in Quedgely, Gloucestershire, after a member of the public reported seeing a group of youths chasing each other with a gun.  The five youths, all aged 14 and 15, were playing with BB guns and toy weapons.  After the incident officers reminded youngsters and their parents that BB guns and imitation weapons can often look like the real thing and could easily be mistaken by a member of the public as a real weapon.

National Newspapers, 22 September 2004

Psychotherapist Heather Stephenson-Snell was found guilty of murdering her love rival's next door neighbour.  Her victim was shot in the stomach with a sawn-off shotgun after he came out of his home in Radcliffe, Manchester, to investigate the noise as she was knocking on her intended victim's front door.  She was given a life sentence for attempted murder and for murder.  It was reported that she had taken shooting lessons prior to the murder.

Evening Chronicle (Newcastle), 21 September 2004

Two shots were fired in a gun attack on a home in Rye Hill in Newcastle's west end.   Two children were living in the house.

icCoventry, 21 September 2004

Two Nuneaton 16-year-olds claimed they were shot at with an air rifle while walking through a recreation ground.  One boy had to go to hospital after a pellet knocked out one of his front teeth.  The other victim was shot in the foot.  In a later report it was revealed that there had been no sniper: the boys had received their injuries after messing around with an air rifle (icCoventry, 19 November 2004).  They were both fined for wasting police time and false reporting.

Waltham Forest Guardian, 20 September 2004

A security van was robbed and a woman guard beaten by a gunman riding a red cycle in Walthamstow.  The man escaped from the back of a superstore with a substantial sum of cash.

Guardian, 20 September 2004

A millionaire businessman was shot dead as he went to get the car out of his garage at his home at Thorpe Green near Virginia Water.  Police refused to discuss possible motives but there appeared to be no indication that the motive was theft.

BBC, 20 September 2004

A 20-year-old man has died after being shot in a vehicle in Bow, east London.

BBC, 19 September 2004

Two men were shot at a nightclub in Coventry.  One was in hospital with arm injuries, the other sustained a head injury.  It is understood that two men had left the club after an argument with one of the victims and returned with guns.

Evening News (Norwich), 17 September 2004

Two men admitted having a loaded air rifle in a public place after an incident in which they had gone out into the street in Long Stratton and one of them had aimed the gun at some street lights.  It occurred after they had been drinking.  They were subsequently confronted with an armed police team.  Both men were fined and one was ordered to pay South Norfolk Council compensation.

News and Star (Cumbria), 17 September 2004

An air weapon was fired at a parked car at Cleator Moor.  The vehicle was damaged by the pellet and police officers said the incident could have been very dangerous.  This incident is the latest in a spate of air weapon attacks on people, pets and property in the area.

Harrow Times, 17 September 2004

A man pointed a handgun at cashiers in a bookmakers in Stanmore, but they ran into a back room and the would-be robber fled empty-handed.

BBC, 16 September 2004

Two women were shot with air pellets within minutes of one another in Gateshead.  One had a lucky escape when the pellet lodged in her coat, missing her back by inches.  The other was shot in the leg.

icTheWharf, 16 September 2004

Following a row with one of her neighbours a woman was shot in the chest with an air weapon.  The incident took place in her front garden near Mudchute DLR on the Isle of Dogs.

Oldham Advertiser, 15 September 2004

Among the items confiscated by police in a huge operation in Oldham, targeting suspected drug dealers, robbers and burglars, were an airgun and imitation firearms.

Edinburgh Evening News, 15 September 2004

David Holland, a father-of-three, was shot dead in the doorway of his home in Loughborough.  His wife heard the shot and spotted the gunman as he fled the scene.  A 35-year-old man has been charged with murder.

Edinburgh Evening News, 14 September 2004

An 8-year-old boy was fortunate to escape serious injury when he was shot three times in the face and arm with a ball-bearing gun.  The boy was playing outside his home in Weston-super-Mare.  An 12-year-old boy is being sought by police.

icCoventry, 14 September 2004

A man armed with a gun took £1000 in wages from a business in Stoke, Coventry.  The weapon was described as some kind of single-barrelled firearm.

Daily Mail, 13 September 2004

Three local men were arrested on suspicion of attempted murder and possession of a firearm with intent to endanger life after two men were shot at by a gunman in east Reading.  The gunman was standing through the sun-roof of a moving car.  Police believe an automatic firearm was used.

National Newspapers, 13 September 2004

A 13-year-old boy was shot during a night-time "lamping" expedition near Halberton, Devon, and died later in hospital.  "Lamping" involves using bright lights to spot and transfix prey.  The victim may have been mistaken for a fox.  A man has been charged with manslaughter (BBC, 8 January 2005).

Epping Forest Guardian, 11 September 2004

A fish and chip shop owner from Chigwell has called on the parish council to put up CCTV cameras after his shop was targeted three times.  In the latest incident damage was caused  when an airgun was fired at the front window.

Sheffield Today, 11 September 2004

A family from Burngreave has left the area after a series of attacks including one in which the father was shot at with an airgun.

BBC, 10 September 2004

A major incident was sparked by a 13-year-old boy after a member of the public reported seeing him brandishing a machine-gun in Bracknell.  The boy had a ball-bearing air gun.

BBC, 10 September 2004 *

Stephen Herbert and Gary Beard were jailed for six years for conspiring to supply hundreds of firearms to London's underworld from two lock-up garages in  south London.  The two men bought hundreds of replica guns, blank-firing pistols and airguns legitimately and converted them into lethal weapons.  The police were able to link the men with the conversion and supply of 574 weapons.  Following a challenge by the Crown Prosecution Service the sentences of both men were increased to nine years (PA News, 27 April 2005).  See also July 2006 Incidents.

BBC, 10 September 2004

A man was shot in the back during a street fight in Thornbury, Bradford.  Police officers called to the scene found a disturbance involving a large crowd of people.

Chester Chronicle, 10 September 2004

A man demanding protection money from a pub in the centre of Chester pulled back his jacket to reveal a handgun.  The gunman did not act aggressively, according to his victim, and eventually left empty-handed.

PA News, 10 September 2004

Cricketer Chris Read was threatened at gunpoint by armed robbers at his home in Mapperley Plains, Nottinghamshire.

Evening Telegraph (Derby), 10 September 2004

An 8-year-old boy was shot in the chest by a 10-year-old boy with a ball-bearing gun whilst a group of children were "playing" on a green in Newhall.  Police confiscated the gun but were not taking any further action.

BBC, 10 September 2004

A man was taken to hospital with a gunshot wound to his leg after an incident in Bristol.

Evening Chronicle (Newcastle), 10 September 2004

Armed police had to respond when a pair of students dressed in combat gear and armed with toy machine guns had alarmed members of the public in Jesmond.  The police commented on the valuable time wasted and asked people to be more responsible.

Wandsworth Guardian, 9 September 2004

A man was shot by a balaclava-clad man in a pub in Summerstown, Tooting.  The victim was shot several times in the stomach and was taken to hospital where he remained in a critical but stable condition.

BBC, 9 September 2004

An elderly couple who were found outside a home in Broadway, Worcestershire, had both died from gunshot wounds.  Police said they were not hunting for anybody else.  At an inquest the coroner said he believed that Fred Jobson had unlawfully killed his wife and took his own life while the balance of his mind was disturbed (BBC, 13 May 2005).

BBC, 8 September 2004

A gun enthusiast threatened two police officers with a loaded air rifle after his wife had called the police to their home in Hailsham.  He was overpowered with pepper spray when the weapon's firing mechanism jammed.  He was given a three-year Community Rehabilitation Order after the judge described his actions as "five minutes of madness".

BBC, 8 September 2004

Following the alleged shooting of a 19-year-old in Sheffield, police arrested two teenagers on suspicion of attempted murder.

Sheffield Today, 8 September 2004

Three schoolboys were confronted by armed police after the were spotted playing with guns at the back of a shopping centre in Doncaster.  They had bought the plastic pellet guns for £4 each at a local market.  A police spokesman emphasised that it is "often difficult for officers to differentiate between imitation firearms and the real thing".

Mirror, 7 September 2004 *

A soldier who was on leave from his base in Germany was shot dead by a mugger in Smethwick.  Narel Sharpe had served in Iraq and Kosovo.  His killer, Levi Walker, is serving a life sentence for murder (BBC, 11 January 2008).

Guardian, 7 September 2004

The 18-year-old son of a couple murdered at their bungalow in Melling, Merseyside, was arrested after his parents were found with gunshot wounds.

Evening Mail (Birmingham), 7 September 2004

Terence Batters, a school caretaker convicted of possessing a stun gun and other weapons, is to face a disciplinary hearing to decide his future.  Batters worked at William Cowper Primary in Newtown.

BBC, 7 September 2004

Three Sunderland footballers have been cautioned for firing a pellet gun from a car window.  The gun was fired at passers-by around Sunderland and Seaburn.    One woman was hit with a plastic pellet.  The Sunderland Echo (8 September) later reported that four players had been suspended from the club and that police say more arrests could follow.  In addition to the three players who were cautioned a fourth, Niall Flynn, was arrested and bailed on suspicion of a shooting.  Further victims have described being attacked.

BBC, 6 September 2004

A man was hit in the shoulder after shots were fired from one vehicle to another in Stechford.  Police were unclear of the motive.

PA News, 6 September 2004 *

A woman, who was shot in the head on the dance floor at a reggae night in High Wycombe, died later in hospital.  A man who is on trial has denied charges of murder, manslaughter and possessing ammunition (BBC, 25 July 2005): he was found not guilty.  Three people have since denied involvement in the death, a man had denied manslaughter and two women have denied perverting the course of justice and one has denied possessing a prohibited semi-automatic handgun (Henley Standard, 23 March 2009).

BBC, 5 September 2004

Robbers shot a shopkeeper in the chest during a raid on a post office in East Dulwich.  Money was stolen from the till.

BBC, 4 September 2004

Three people were injured in a spate of shootings in Sheffield.  A teenager was wounded in Burngreave in an incident that may be linked to later shooting in a nightclub.  In the third incident a man was shot at his home, also in Burngreave.

Eastern Daily Press, 4 September 2004

A 13-year-old was shot in the eye when he was taunted by a teenager with a BB gun whilst playing with friends in Briston.  He narrowly escaped being blinded.

BBC, 3 September 2004

A man was taken to hospital after being shot in the stomach with an airgun in Leamington Spa.  At the time he was sitting outside drinking with friends.

icCroydon, 3 September 2004

Disc jockey Shaun Halcomb was jailed for seven years for building a weapons factory in a garage in South Norwood.  He converted blank-firing guns into an arsenal of deadly firearms.

Yorkshire Post, 2 September 2004 *

Two men have been arrested by detectives investigating the murder of a man in Huddersfield in November 2001.  The victim was shot twice at the garage where he worked.

Tameside Advertiser, 2 September 2004

A man was taken to hospital and treated for a gunshot wound to his chest after a shooting incident in Mossley.  He was reported to be in a critical condition.

Evening Mail (Birmingham), 2 September 2004

Shots were fired during a high-speed car chase along Birmingham's outer ring road in Nechells and Digbeth.  Police believed that this was an "isolated incident" and that gun crime is falling. 

BBC, 2 September 2004 *

A 15-year-old boy was shot whilst walking in Whalley Range, Manchester.  Three shots were fired from inside a car.  He was treated for minor injuries to his right thigh.  Two days later a man was shot in the head in another drive by shooting in Whalley Range (South Manchester Reporter, 9 September 2004).

BBC, 2 September 2004

A man has been charged with possessing an air weapon in a public place after an incident when armed police were called to a property in Plymstock.

BBC, 2 September 2004

Two youths were arrested after a bus driver was injured with what is thought to have been a pellet gun in Acomb, York.  The driver suffered a minor eye injury.  The bus company, First, have now said that the bus will not run in the area in the evenings.

This is Cornwall, 2 September 2004

Three teenagers accused of shooting a man with an airgun were told to keep out of trouble for two years to avoid a £250 fine.  The victim, who was shot while working in Wallsend Industrial Estate, Plymouth, was said to be "furious" at the leniency of the court.  He needed surgery to remove a pellet embedded an inch above his left eye.

BBC, 1 September 2004

A youth, aged about 16, shot a bus driver in the head with an airgun pellet.  The driver suffered bruising and swelling.  The incident took place in Rotherham.

This is Exeter, 1 September 2004

Firearms officers were called to a farm in Oakford, Tiverton after a man threatened to kill police and ambulance staff.  A man was arrested and an air weapon was recovered from outside the address.

Hull Daily Mail, 31 August 2004

A court heard how a gun, which started life as an imitation but was then converted to fire 8mm cartridges, was used in a raid in Hull.  According to the Humberside Police force's armourer, the gun could have been bought from any high street gun shop.  A 17-year-old was convicted.

This is Gloucestershire, 31 August 2004

A customer in Poundland, a shop in Gloucester city centre, was shocked to see a child wandering around the store with what looked like a real gun.  The 9 mm air pistol with soft bullets was on sale in the shop.

BBC, 31 August 2004 *

A man was shot dead at an unofficial party in Kensal Green, it is believed after he got into a row with a group of up to 10 men.  Three men have been convicted of the murder  (see December 2006 Incidents).

BBC, 31 August 2004

Two men were given on-the-spot fines of £80 each was police caught them with replica guns at Blackpool Pleasure Beach.  An armed response team was despatched to the scene.

BBC, 31 August 2004

A driver, who was forced to stop his car in Dewsbury, was shot with what is believed to be a Taser stun gun.  He suffered an eye injury.  His 9-year-old son, who was sitting next to him at the time of the attack, was unharmed.

AOL News, 28 August 2004

A man was shot dead as he sat in a car in Kingsbury, north London.  A single shot had been fired through the driver's side window.

icBirmingham, 28 August 2004

A toy gun was seized and five people arrested following an alleged gang fight in Birchills.  The BB gun was found in a car.

PA News, 27 August 2004

Three men forced their way into a house in Toothill, Swindon, and threatened a man with what appeared to be an airgun.  The man suffered broken ribs during the aggravated burglary.

Oldham Advertiser, 27 August 2004

A three-year-old boy was shot in the face with an air rifle whilst playing in the street outside his home in Sholver.  An X-ray revealed a metal airgun pellet had penetrated the skin just an inch-and-a-half from his right eye.  The gun is believed to have been fired from nearby woodland or from neighbouring flats.

Worksop Today, 27 August 2004

A four-year-old girl from Worksop was shot in the face with a BB-gun by a young boy, believed to be aged 8.  The girl came within millimetres of losing an eye.  The boy had apparently been bought the gun while on holiday.  Police confiscated with weapon but could not charge him with any offence because he is too young.

BBC, 26 August 2004

Police arrested a man on suspicion of murdering a man at his home in Leeds.  The victim was shot dead as he slept.

BBC, 26 August 2004

Three men were arrested following raids in Ealing, Hanwell and Southall in which drugs and firearms were seized.  The raids were part of a Met scheme to prevent trouble at the Notting Hill Carnival.

Daily Mirror, 24 August 2004

A family in Ashton-under-Lyne stormed a neighbour's home and beat up her friends who were making a noise during a late night party.  Peter Roberts, who was armed with a shotgun, received a two and a half year jail sentence.  Two other men in the group received jail sentences, and Mrs Roberts got 240 hours community punishment.

icCoventry, 23 August 2004

A man appeared before magistrates charged with possessing a firearm following an incident in which a driver was allegedly threatened with a handgun by another motorist at a roundabout in Coventry.

icSouthLondon, 20 August 2004

A grandmother was shot in the neck with an air rifle while she was waiting for a bus in Sanderstead.  The pellet, which doctors say is too dangerous to remove, missed an artery by one millimetre.

Cambridge News, 20 August 2004

A pensioner's life is being made a misery by youths who pelt his home with fruit and fire airgun pellets at his lounge window at his home in Barton.

Evening Standard, 20 August 2004

A 13-year-old boy was seriously ill in hospital after he was shot when a car pulled up near his home in Didcot and a gunman opened fire with a shotgun.  Two men, aged 18 and 20, were later charged with intent wounding with intent and possession of a firearm with intent to endanger life (Telegraph, 2 September 2004).

Evening Chronicle (Newcastle), 20 August 2004

Paul Wilkinson was jailed for 10 months after he was caught with a loaded pistol in a car in East Boldon.  Only months earlier he had been released from jail following a sentence for threatening to shoot two police officers.

BBC, 20 August 2004

Four people have been arrested on suspicion of possessing a firearm in Manchester city centre.  Armed police recovered a BB gun.

BBC, 20 August 2004

A group of youngsters spotted carrying what appeared to be a handgun in Kendal prompted an armed police response. Two BB guns were recovered.

BBC, 19 August 2004

Jamie Krilovs, who allegedly threatened his neighbour in Mansfield with an airgun, is being evicted from his home by Mansfield District Council.

icCoventry, 18 August 2004

Police in Leamington are asking the public to report anyone seen carrying pellet guns and BB guns after a series of broken windows and one attack on a child.

Evening Mail (Birmingham), 18 August 2004

David Thynne kept a hoard of guns and ammunition in a secret cupboard at his home in Castle Vale.  When police tested the weapons they found that 14 of them were capable of firing projectiles.  After pleading guilty to 12 charges of possessing firearms when prohibited, three of possessing ammunition when prohibited and one charge of assault Thynne received an 18 month jail sentence.  All the weapons subject to the charges were either air rifles or pistols.

BBC, 18 August 2004

A man was shot in the abdomen with a shotgun at his Sheffield flat.  His attacker left the flat and ran off.

BBC, 18 August 2004

Six teenagers, aged between 15 and 18, were arrested after a three hour siege at a block of flats in Bath during which shots were fired.  Two air handguns were found at the flat

BBC, 18 August 2004

A man was found dead in a van, parked in a lay-by on the A22 near the Caterham junction, with a bullet wound in his head and a handgun inside the vehicle.

Evening Mail (Birmingham), 17 August 2004

A 22-year-old man who was shot in the centre of Walsall was being kept under police guard in hospital.

Evening Mail (Birmingham), 17 August 2004

Darren Neeld, 18, who pointed a BB gun at a terrified woman in Solihull, was given a two year conditional discharge, after he admitted possessing an offensive weapon and using threatening words and behaviour.  He claimed to have been aiming the pistol at a friend.

Peterborough Today, 17 August 2004

Police have had to step up patrols at the College of West Anglia in Wisbech, which has suffered more than 10 vandalism attacks.  On two occasions air rifles have been fired from undergrowth near to the college, causing windows to shatter.

Sheffield Today, 16 August 2004

A nine-year-old partially sighted boy and his autistic twin brother were shot at by youths with a BB gun.  The boy was shot in the chest during the incident in Stocksbridge.

Huddersfield Daily Examiner, 16 August 2004

Golcar Cricket Club has been suffering a number of problems of vandalism including its young players being targeted with a BB gun from a nearby house during  an under-12s match.

BBC, 16 August 2004

A new trial is to take place of Anthony Burns of Prestwood, Bucks, who is accused of shooting a man who was badger spotting.  The victim's night vision goggles were allegedly mistaken by the accused for a fox's eyes .

BBC, 16 August 2004

Police are hunting a man who threatened staff with a long barrelled firearm after he'd walked into a police station in Bestwood, Nottingham.

Bedfordshire Sunday, 15 August 2004

The paper reported that airguns and BB guns are available to children at car boot sales.  Parents were deeply worried about the lack of control.  The article was illustrated by photographic evidence from sales in Biggleswade and Pulloxhill.

This is South Devon, 14 August 2004

The firing of BB guns is among the things concerning a Paignton pensioner, whose life is being made "hell" by a gang of youths.  A picture of a youth appearing to aim a gun at a girl had been printed the previous month.

Hartlepool Today, 13 August 2004

A bus in Wheatley Hill was hit by an air rifle shot which smashed a window.  The incident was the latest in a spate of attacks on buses.

icBerkshire, 13 August 2004

The mother of a 13-year-old who was arrested for carrying a BB gun in Bracknell is warning others that possessing an imitation firearm in public is illegal.  The boy had bought the "toy" gun for £10.

This is Bristol, 13 August 2004

A bus driver was shot in the face by a youth armed with a ball-bearing gun whilst his bus was stopped in Knowle West.  The teenager fired several shots through the open door.

BBC, 13 August 2004

Paul Bailey, who worked in the Leicestershire police firearms department, was convicted of running a brothel in Coalville.  He also admitted possessing cannabis and having ammunition without a licence.

BBC, 13 August 2004

A teenage girl canoeing along the River Tyne near Hexham, was shot in the eye with an air weapon.  The pellet lodged in her eye.  Two boys, aged 13 and 14, were arrested.

BBC, 13 August 2004

During a two week period in Thanet, three people and a cat were injured in attacks involving air rifles and BB guns.

Staines Guardian, 13 August 2004

A man was charged with using a firearm to resist arrest in the car park of a retail park in Staines.

Express and Star, 12 August 2004

Armed police sealed off part of Cannock town centre following reports of a man making threats with a gun. Later a man was taken into custody and the police found a ball bearing gun.  A number of incidents involving BB guns have been reported including an attack on a 72-year-old woman which left her with a small swelling to her arm.  A 13-year-old boy was arrested in connection with the latter incident.

National Newspapers, 11 August 2004

The mother and step-father of Michael O'Brien were found shot dead in their bungalow in Trusthorpe, Lincolnshire.  O'Brien was jailed in July for the murder of Marvyn Bradshaw who was shot outside a pub in Bulwell, Nottingham (see Evening Post (Nottingham), 13 July 2004, below).

Sunday Sun, 8 August 2004

Two schoolboys were arrested at gunpoint by police in South Shields after allegedly pointing BB guns at people.  The police issued yet another warning to parents about the impossibility of distinguishing real and imitation guns.

Telegraph, 8 August 2004

Mark Smith from Luton, who worked with juvenile offenders for Hammersmith and Fulham Council, has been jailed for eight years for gun-running.  Peter Mattheou from Streatham received a five-and-a-half-year sentence for the same offence.  Police had found three guns in a car in which they were travelling.

BBC, 7 August 2004

A farmer was arrested after shooting a suspected burglar on his property in Ockbrook, near Derby.  The injured man, who was also arrested, received a minor pellet wound to his leg.  The burglar, John Rae, was later jailed for seven years.  He, together with two other men, had raided the property previously in July 2003, had broken into a gun cabinet and stolen five shotguns and other weapons.  Rae undertook a second raid the day before the shooting.  The judge said the farmer's actions were 'very sensible'.  The Crown Prosecution Service had ruled out charges, though only after a thorough review (This is London, 26 October 2004).

News & Star, 7 August 2004

Police were hunting a gunman who shot a woman in the head with an airgun.  The victim was driving along a street in Carlisle.  The newspaper highlighted a number of recent incidents in the area  involving airguns.

National Newspapers, 6 August 2004

Wolverhampton Crown Court heard how a boy of 12 held up a grocer's shop in West Bromwich with a sawn-off 12-bore shotgun.  He demanded cash and cigarettes.  The boy admitted the offence and was given a three-year supervision order.  Police are still investigating how the gun came into the boy's possession.

BBC, 6 August 2004

Danny Parris, 18, died after being shot twice in the back at close range in Toxteth.  A shotgun is believed to have been used.  A 17-year-old youth has been arrested.

Whitehaven News, 5 August 2004

A Cleator Moor teenager accidentally shot a friend in the shoulder with an air rifle, a weapon he was banned from using.  The incident happened a day after he'd stolen £1500 from a wine shop.  He received a sentence of 12 months' detention for the offences.

icCoventry, 5 August 2004

Paul Muffett took aim at a police helicopter with an air rifle during a five-hour siege at a pub in Harbury, Warwickshire.  He was jailed for two years.

Nottingham Evening Post, 4 August 2004

Craig Bentley was sentenced to 12 months in a young offenders' institution after he was found selling an imitation gun in the toilets of a Mansfield night club.

BBC, 4 August 2004

Brendan Flynn, 28, was jailed for 20 years at Manchester Crown Court for his part in three gangland shootings.   These were part of a drugs turf war in Greater Manchester.   He pleaded guilty to three counts of attempted murder and three of having a rifle with intent to endanger life.

Daily Mirror, 3 August 2004 *

A police markswoman is reported to have shot herself dead after walking into the armoury of her police station in Victoria, Central London, and selecting a gun.  A coroner has recorded a verdict that the woman killed herself.  She had been suffering from depression (BBC, 6 April 2005).

BBC, 3 August 2004

A policeman was shot in the face with an air rifle whilst on routine patrol in Dipton, County Durham.  A shot was fired from the window of a house.  PC Lee Jackson was recovering in hospital.  A serving soldier has been charged.

National Newspapers, 2 August 2004

Chanel Taylor was shot dead at her home in Huthwaite weeks after getting married.  A shotgun was later recovered from the house.  After a lengthy police hunt her father Terry Rodgers was arrested and charged with her murder.  Terry Rodgers, who had admitted shooting his daughter but had not faced trial, died in hospital after starving himself to death whilst in prison (AOL News, 26 February 2006).

icBirmingham, 2 August 2004

An off-duty police officer helped catch a man armed with a gun who opened fire on another man during a street brawl in Aston.  A BB gun was recovered.

National Newspapers, 1 August 2004

Police named a man shot dead at a gym in Sparkhill, Birmingham, on 29 July as Azmat Yaqub.  The shooting took place in the weights room next to an area where a group of youngsters were having a class.  The victim received multiple gunshot wounds to his head and chest.  It was reported that he had previously survived another assassination attempt a year ago which killed his friend.  E-fit images of two men who burst into the gym were released in October (PA News, 5 October 2004).

BBC, 31 July 2004

A man armed with an air rifle was reported to have refused to leave a woman's house in Selby.  Armed police cordoned off the area. A man was later arrested and bailed.  An imitation firearm was recovered.

BBC, 31 July 2004

After a shooting incident, witnessed by police dealing with a domestic disturbance in Doncaster, in which a man was shot, a man has been charged with attempted murder.

BBC, 30 July 2004

A man was found shot dead by his 14-year-old stepson at his house in Hyde Park, Leeds.  Police said he had been shot in the head.

BBC, 30 July 2004

Granville Grant was jailed for nearly five years after being caught with a loaded gun in Leicester city centre.  He admitted possessing a handgun and ammunition.

South London Press, 30 July 2004

Police and trading standards officers seized more than 40 BB guns from six shops in Lewisham.  They were seized under the Consumer Protection Act 1987 and the Toy Safety Regulations Act 1995.  Many were said to look extremely realistic.

PA News, 30 July 2004

Sean O'Connor was told he'd escaped prison by a hair's breath after he'd tried to take a replica pistol on to a plane at Stansted Airport.  Security staff found the blank-firing Beretta and 11 blank rounds of ammunition as he tried to board a flight to Londonderry.  He was ordered to carry out 200 hours of community service.

Shropshire Star, 29 July 2004

A man suffered wounds to his chest, stomach and leg after being shot three times by a masked man through the passenger window of his car.  He had just pulled into the driveway of his home in Kirkdale, Merseyside.  The shooting left him seriously injured.

Macclesfield Express, 29 July 2004

Police who'd discouraged parents from buying BB guns for their children were criticised for ignoring reports that a gang of children were alarming shoppers in Macclesfield by pointing the guns and  shooting pellets at shoppers, children and workers.

BBC, 29 July 2004 *

A man who was shot after getting out of his car in Ilford, Essex, died later in hospital.  The shooting may have followed a row with another motorist.

BBC, 28 July 2004

Police in Hereford said they were becoming increasingly concerned about the number of BB guns being seen in the city.  One was dropped by two youngsters, believed to be aged 12 or 13, leaving the technical college after an attempted burglary.  It was the fourth time such a weapon had been brandished in public in ten days.

icSouthLondon, 28 July 2004

Brian Matthews was jailed for five years after the police seized a machine pistol and almost 100 rounds of ammunition hidden under the floorboards of his flat in South Norwood.

Huddersfield Daily Examiner, 28 July 2004

A betting shop in Sheepridge was raided by a masked man who pointed a gun at the two men behind the till.

BBC, 28 July 2004

A 9-year-old girl was shot in the face with a pellet from a BB gun in an incident in Workington.  The pellet narrowly missed her eye.  Her attacker is described as aged 12-13.

PA News, 28 July 2004

Thieves armed with an ice-pick and an imitation handgun robbed Harvey Nichols in Knightsbridge, central London.  Six Rolex watches were stolen.

BBC, 27 July 2004

A man walking in Newcastle, Staffordshire, was approached by a rowdy group of five men whom he asked to be quiet.  One of the men hit him and then shot him in the right cheek with an air pistol.  The victim was treated in hospital for bruising to the face and body.

Evening Mail (Birmingham), 27 July 2004

Two women were terrified by a car-jacker who kidnapped them at gunpoint in Sutton Coldfield.  Tanvir Hussain admitted two counts of kidnap and one of handling a stolen vehicle.  He was jailed for four years.

icBerkshire, 27 July 2004

A teenage girl from Wokingham was shot by a pellet gun aimed from a passing car.  It was the second incident in two days involving a suspected BB gun.  The police had already confiscated a BB gun from a Wokingham teenager after a resident became concerned the weapon was being used in a nearby park.

BBC, 27 July 2004

Four people have been arrested in the Bolton area in connection with separate gun-related incidents.  The first incident involved a man with a gun leaving a cinema, the second when a woman told police a gunman was lurking in her garden and a third when a man was threatened with a pistol on his doorstep.

BBC, 26 July 2004

A man was shot in the elbow and torso whilst walking in Low Moor, Bradford.  He was taken to Bradford Royal Infirmary.

BBC, 26 July 2004

A Coventry betting shop deputy manager was shot in the stomach after he was confronted by two robbers wearing balaclavas.  The incident happened as he tried to open the shop.

BBC, 25 July 2004

Two brothers were attacked in Stockbridge Village, Merseyside by a gunman who opened fire.  One of the victims was in a "serious but stable" condition.  Anthony Molden was charged with attempted murder and with possession of a firearm with intent to endanger life (BBC, 3 August 2004)

Shropshire Star, 24 July 2004

Three men armed with a sawn-off shotgun raided Hadley Services and Village Club in Shropshire.  Thousands of pounds were stolen as the gun was held to the head of a barmaid.

Express & Star, 23 July 2004

Armed police were called after a coach party was fired at with a pellet gun whilst travelling through Lichfield.  No one was injured but the passengers and driver were left shocked.  The pellet made a hole in one of the double-glazed windows towards the front of the coach.

This is Local London, 22 July 2004

Alan Lynserd Mullings was convicted of having an imitation firearm with intent to commit an indictable offence after an incident in Leatherhead in which police surrounded a flat where they believed Mullings holed up.  He was given a life sentence.

BBC, 22 July 2004

A four year jail sentence was imposed on John Clarke who threatened staff working on Shrewsbury's flood defences with a replica gun.

Sun, 22 July 2004

A boy of 17 was killed in the back garden of a house in Wythenshawe.  He was shot in the back of the head with a shotgun.  His attacker and another man fled in a car driven by a third man.  Two men were later charged by police (BBC, 13 August 2004).  Six men have been jailed over the killing of the teenager (see January 2006 Incidents).

Evening Chronicle (Newcastle), 21 July 2004

A van packed with a hundred potentially lethal BB guns was stolen from North Shields town centre.  The guns were among property worth £1500 taken.  The van belonged to a delivery driver who have left the guns overnight.

icCoventry, 21 July 2004

A teenager was shot in the face with a ball-bearing gun while playing football in Leamington.  Police say the victim is lucky to still have his sight.

BBC, 21 July 2004

Following an armed siege at a house in Norwich, a man was being question by police.  The man, who was armed with a shotgun, had confronted police when they responded to call at the house.

This is Gloucestershire, 21 July 2004

A teenager was shot with an airgun whilst walking with two friends in Mitcheldean in the Forest of Dean.  The shot was fired from a car.  The boy felt something hit his wrist, breaking the skin and causing bleeding.  Four teenagers were subsequently arrested.  This followed two other recent incidents in Gloucestershire in which four Gloucester youths were arrested after shooting incidents.  In one a man was shot in the arm with an airgun pellet.

Evening Post (Nottingham), 20 July 2004

John Walker was warned that he faced a life sentence after he admitted carrying out robberies on three female university students in Nottingham.  He pled guilty to the robberies, to possessing an imitation firearm with intent to cause harm and to theft.  Police believe that the same imitation gun was used by Walker's girlfriend, Toni Martin, who had already been jailed for five years for carrying out a separate robbery.

Evening Telegraph (Derbyshire), 20 July 2004

A 16-year-old boy was charged with attempted armed robbery after a shopkeeper in Church Gresley was shot in the face with a pellet gun.

BBC, 20 July 2004

Ten people were arrested in raids in south Manchester.  The men were being held on suspicion of violence and firearms offences.

BBC, 19 July 2004 *

A 72-year-old man died in a pub shooting in the Hendon area of Sunderland.  Another man, aged 19 and believed to have been the intended victim, was seriously injured.  Three masked men had entered the pub armed with a shotgun.  Robert Fox has been jailed for 15 years for manslaughter and Robert Chapman was given a life sentence after being found guilty of murder.  (BBC, 16 March 2006).

BBC, 19 July 2004

Three men attacked another during an argument in Dudley: one pulled out a pistol and shot the victim.

BBC, 19 July 2004

Two men were dropped off separately at the Derbyshire Royal Infirmary, both suffering from gunshot wounds.  One had a wound in his back, the other had to undergo surgery to remove a bullet from his throat.  The shooting occurred in Derby city centre.

Leeds Today, 17 July 2004

A17-year-old was on trial accused of shooting a woman in a quiet country lane off the A58 Leeds to Wetherby road.  The woman claimed she was dragged from her home by three men in Chapeltown, Leeds, and taken to a lane where she was shot four times.

Whitehaven News, 16 July 2004

A number of boys took an air rifle and ammunition from an unlocked cabinet at a house at Thornhill, near Egremont, and then took pot shots at windows.  A 12-year-old admitted the offences including theft of ammunition and causing damage to the windows of Thornhill Chapel.

Kenilworth Weekly News, 15 July 2004

A man who said he had a gun attempted to rob a building society in Kenilworth.  The alarm was raised and the man left with no money.

BBC, 15 July 2004

Scott Atkinson, 20, and a 17-year-old youth were detained for four years after they had been caught in Manchester with a loaded Uzi sub-machine gun and a sawn-off shotgun. 

BBC, 15 July 2004

A caretaker and a pupil were shot with an airgun at Griff Special School in Nuneaton.  The boy was not seriously hurt, but it was a frightening experience according to the acting head.  A 15-year-old boy was later arrested.

Eastern Daily Press, 15 July 2004

Two men, one thought to be armed with a gun, were spotted in a supermarket car park in Lowestoft.

This is Nottingham, 15 July 2004

Nottingham Coroner's Court heard how Brendon Lawrence, 16, was shot while sitting in a car in St Ann's, Nottingham, in February 2002.  A gunshot wound to the chest caused his death.  The gunmen drove off in the car.  A verdict of unlawful killing was recorded.

Evening Gazette (Middlesbrough), 15 July 2004

A man and a woman were being questioned by police after two airguns and a quantity of drugs were discovered at a Thornaby house.

BBC, 14 July 2004

Guns were seized in a raid on a caravan site in Thorne near Doncaster.  Two brothers were arrested and faced various charges including making threats to kill and possession of a firearm.

BBC, 14 July 2004

Four army rifles were believed stolen from Catterick Garrison.  The guns have an effective range of 1 km.

Evening Post (Nottingham), 14 July 2004

Firefighters were reported to be furious after no charges were brought against a teenager who shot a recruit in Ollerton with an air rifle pellet.  The victim was hit in the face.  It was said that the youth was using the rifle in a field when he accidentally fired into the grounds of a fire service complex.

BBC, 14 July 2004

A clean-up of the River Derwent at Church Wilne near Long Eaton resulted in the discovery of a gun and three safes.

Evening Post (Nottingham), 13 July 2004 *

Michael O'Brien was jailed for life after shooting dead Marvyn Bradshaw outside a pub in Bulwell.  The killing is believed to be a tragic case of mistaken identity.  A second man allegedly involved in the shooting was still on the run at the time of the trial but was later jailed for 18 years for providing the gun used in the murder (see January 2007 Incidents).  See also National Newspapers, 11 August 2004, above.

This is Hull, 13 July 2004

A father called for a ban on all imitation firearms after his son was hit in the eye with a plastic pellet in an incident in Willerby, Humberside.

Shropshire Star, 12 July 2004

Police believe that an air gun was used to cause thousands of pounds of damage to an Oswestry church.

Evening Gazette (Middlesbrough), 10 July 2004

Ben Edgell took potshots with an air pistol among terrified Christmas shoppers in Stockton.  At Teesside Crown Court he was sentenced to 140 hours of community service.

Huddersfield Daily Examiner , 9 July 2004

Armed police searched the Deighton area of Huddersfield after reports of a man being seen with a gun.  A man was arrested but no weapon was found.

BBC, 9 July 2004

A 16-year-old boy was sent to a young offenders' institution for 18 months after shooting a bus driver with an airgun.  A BB gun was fired at the man's face on a bus in Hartcliffe, Bristol, in March 2004.

icCoventry, 9 July 2004

A man was in hospital after being shot in the cattle market in Rugby.

BBC, 9 July 2004

Armed police arrested three people after reports that a group of youths were carrying guns in Derby.  The incident led to renewed warnings about the carrying of airguns and BB guns in public.

National Newspapers, 7 July 2004

Ex-soldier David Robson shot dead his former friend in a pub in Wellington, Somerset.  The victim was a love rival.  More than a year before the killing, Robson had held a gun to the woman involved and had threatened to kill her.

BBC, 6 July 2004 *

Two men were being questioned after a man was shot dead in a house in Oldham.  The victim had two wounds in the stomach.  A man was charged with murder in November 2004 (BBC, 16 November 2005).  Three men were acquitted of murder after a trial in 2006.  A man has been arrested by police investigating the death (BBC, 2 September 2008).

BBC, 6 July 2004

Tracey Fenby tried to rob two Cornish sub post offices with a toy gun.  She left her 4-year-old son outside while she attempted to rob the shops in Illogan and Coverack.

BBC, 6 July 2004

A police helicopter was scrambled to Rectory Farm in Northampton after a youth was seen to be carrying what was later found to be an imitation firearm.

BBC, 6 July 2004

Sam Lester, 12, from Woodville in south Derbyshire was hit in the eye by an airgun pellet whilst playing with friends.  She is now calling for BB guns to be banned and is backing a campaign for them to be handed in to police.

This is Nottingham, 5 July 2004

Fabian Lewis, 19, was jailed for six years for two robbery offences and two counts of possession of a firearm with intent to commit an offence.  He had robbed two shops in Wollaton; during each robbery he produced a silver handgun.

Sunday Sun, 4 July 2004

A 25-year-old man was shot in the leg near Bede's World in Jarrow.

National Newspapers, 4 July 2004

Eric Akinniranye, who was on release from a 10-year jail term for firearm offences, was shot dead in a targeted attack in Camberwell.  He was shot several times after his bike was rammed by a Mercedes car.  Paul Simpson appeared in court in November 2004 charged with the murder (PA News, 6 November 2004)

PA News, 3 July 2004

Shooting occurred during a car chase through Birmingham city centre.  It is believed that no-one was injured.

BBC, 2 July 2004

A 12-year-old boy found in possession of a replica gun in Northampton told police that he had swapped a bike for it.  The beat officer who challenged the boy said "I don't know why anyone would legitimately want to walk around the streets of Northampton brandishing a gun."

Liverpool Echo, 2 July 2004

A verdict of unlawful killing was recorded over the death of Craig Eaton who was shot dead in Kensington, Merseyside, in February.  He received two gunshot wounds to the chest.  It had emerged that he was mistaken for somebody else on the night of his death.

BBC, 2 July 2004

A man was in a serious condition in hospital after being shot in Thornton Heath.  The man had apparently been arguing in the street with two other men at the time of the shooting.

BBC, 2 July 2004

Two armed men who started fighting at a bus stop in West Norwood were arrested in connection with firearms offences.  Two automatic handguns were found.

BBC, 1 July 2004

A 19-year-old man was killed in a drive-by shooting close to the Hawthorns football ground in West Bromwich.  Handgun shots were fired from the back of a car containing two masked men.

Evening Chronicle (Newcastle), 1 July 2004

An airgun sniper was being sought by the police after a 13-year-old boy was shot in Byker.  A pellet narrowly missed the boy's eye.

Matlock Today, 1 July 2004

A jogger was hit in the ribs when he was shot while running through Matlock.  The weapons was thought to be a BB gun, possibly fired from a passing car.

Evening Telegraph (Derby), 1 July 2004

It is estimated that it cost the taxpayer £1000 to send a police armed response team to deal with reports of a furtive-looking man walking along the road with a covered-up gun in Mackworth.  A teenager was found with an air rifle.

This is South Devon, 1 July 2004

Three 15-year-olds were being questioned by police after a 13-year-old girl was shot in the face with an air rifle pellet in Torquay.  The pellet had to be removed at a nearby Family Centre.

National Newspapers, 1 July 2004

Police are to launch a blitz on websites selling illegal weapons and component parts to the UK.  Addresses were raided throughout the country as part of a national operation targeting internet gun crime.  UK buyers are suspected of buying blank firing weapons and converting them to fire ball-bearings.  More than 50 suspects were arrested.

This is Devon, 30 June 2004

A youth was shot in the head with an airgun in woods at Torquay.  A pellet was removed from his temple.

BBC, 30 June 2004

Several cars in Aston, Birmingham, were left with bullet holes after a drive-by shooting.  West Midlands Police said that two cars were involved.

Evening Gazette (Middlesbrough), 30 June 2004

The owner of an animal carcass incinerator was found dead at his office in Charltons after a shooting incident.  There were not believed to be any suspicious circumstances.

BBC, 30 June 2004 *

Tony Piggott, 19, has been jailed for life for murdering a man on a nightclub dance floor in Oldham in August 2003.  The victim was hit with a bottle and then shot by Piggott.

Liverpool Echo, 29 June 2004

In an incident that highlights the potential of BB guns to cause serious injury, David Hazel was shot in the back with a high-powered ball bearing gun.  His attacker had got out of a car outside the victim's home in Woodchurch, Merseyside, and shouted abuse before firing. David Hazel may now be paralysed.  A reporter for the Liverpool Echo was able to buy a similar weapon, which fires steel ball bearings, over the counter for just £36.99.

icCoventry, 29 June 2004

A Bedworth family was held hostage by a man who threatened them with a knife and gun.  The mother and her son were able to escape when the gunman was distracted.

Shropshire Star, 29 June 2004

A schoolgirl who was shot in the face with an air rifle described her panic moments at Shrewsbury Crown Court during the trial of Ian Williams who was accused of assaulting her and an 18-year-old man in Oakengates.

Sun, 29 June 2004

A police constable died from a gunshot wound at Ulverston police station.  At the time of reporting the circumstances of his death had not been established but they were not thought to be suspicious.

Sheffield Today, 29 June 2004

Armed police arrested a motorist after they stopped a car believed to have been used in a drive-by shooting.  Eighteen hours earlier a man had been seriously injured in the stomach as he sat in a car near a club in Pitsmoor.

Telegraph, 29 June 2004

Paul Hughes was jailed for life after admitting robbery and possession of a firearm after he'd tried to rob an Indian takeaway in Manchester, where he was a regular customer, with a plastic gun.

Shropshire Star, 28 June 2004

Shrewsbury Crown Court was told that a Telford man shot a 14-year-old schoolgirl in the face with an air rifle to "impress his girlfriend".  He denied firing the gun at the girl and also firing at an 18-year-old youth three days earlier.  He was cleared of all charges by the jury.

This is Nottingham, 28 June 2004

A gang of nine men from the  Nottingham area were all convicted of a drive-by shooting in Sheffield.  Nottinghamshire police said the conviction was a victory in their fight against drug and gun-related activity.

icBirmingham, 27 June 2004

A mother from Bedworth in Warwickshire fled her home after a stalker threatened to kill her and her child.   She had snubbed his offer of a date.  He turned up at her house, behaved strangely and then took out a knife and gun.

BBC, 27 June 2004

A man was arrested after a gun was fired in a residential area of Derby.  No-one was injured in the incident.

Sheffield Today, 26 June 2004

Jamie Wild, from Meadowbank, has been accused of 60 crimes including burglary, assaults and shoplifting.  He has also been accused of firing at people with a ball bearing gun.  He has been made subject of an Anti-Social Behaviour Order.

National Newspapers, 26 June 2004

David Walker shot off his own testicles with a shotgun after the weapon fired as he walked down the street.  Walker had picked up the weapon from home after arguing with a friend at the pub in Dinnington, near Rotherham, and was returning there when he shot himself.  He was jailed for five years.

Evening Gazette (Middlesbrough), 26 June 2004

Two boys were spotted running down a Middlesbrough street waving "extremely realistic" handguns in the air.  One authentic looking toy cap gun was confiscated by police.

BBC, 26 June 2004

A man with gunshot wounds to his arm arrived at an east London hospital after a shooting incident near Charing Cross station.

BBC, 24 June 2004

Armed police swooped on a Hull supermarket after a man had been seen brandishing a handgun.  An imitation firearm was taken from one of two men arrested at the scene.

South London Press, 22 June 2004

Armed police guarded the wake of a man who had been murdered in Brixton earlier in the month.  He was shot several times in the head.  Police feared that mourners would be the target of a drive-by shooting.

icSurreyOnline, 22 June 2004

Inez Roberts, a former soldier, said she used the BB gun she carried "to shoot at kids" who caused trouble and to scare them.  Roberts was carrying the gun when she was arrested in Carshalton for riding her motorcycle whilst almost three times over the legal limit.  She was given an 18-month rehabilitation order and sentenced to 100 hours' community service.

BBC, 21 June 2004

A man strimming grass on the A6 in Alvaston, Derby, was shot in the leg with an air rifle.  He required six stitches in the wound.

itvYorkshire, 21 June 2004

Two men were shot as they were walking home in Bradford.  One man was released from hospital after treatment, the other was still recovering at the time of the report.

Sunday Mirror, 20 June 2004

A 16-year-old boy died after being shot at point-blank range in a street in the Dingle area of Liverpool.  The boy managed to stagger to a nearby house to raise the alarm but died at the scene.  A man has been charged with murder (BBC, 4 November 2005).  Three men arrested in connection with the murder were reported to have failed to answer bail in November 2005 but another has appeared in court charged with murder and is awaiting trial (BBC, 12 January 2006).

BBC, 19 June 2004

A teenage girl was shot between the eyes with an air rifle as she talked to friends in a park in Luton.  She needed treatment to remove the pellet.

BBC, 17 June 2004

Twenty two people were arrested in connection with hard drugs and firearms dealing after a police raid in Brixton.

News Shopper, 15 June 2004

A man threatened staff at a bank in Farnborough with a silver handgun before lashing out at an elderly customer with his fist.

BBC, 15 June 2004

A man was shot repeatedly in a pub car park in Leeds after an earlier altercation between the man and a group of youths.  He was recovering in hospital.

This is Bristol, 15 June 2004

A man shot dead a mentally ill neighbour with a sawn-off shotgun because he believed he was disturbing his son.  Andrew Warburton fired a single shot into his victim's head on his doorstep in Weston-super-Mare.  Warburton admitted the killing but denied murder.

Evening Chronicle (Newcastle), 14 June 2004

Stuart Ryland was charged with various offences after a police raid on a pub in Wallsend.  Four suspected firearms and some ammunition were found.

icCoventry, 14 June 2004

Wayne Jacques pleaded guilty in court to two charges of possessing a firearm with intent to cause fear of violence. He had taken potshots at young boys with an air rifle in Bulkington.  In October he was given a three year community rehabilitation order after the judge was told he was mentally ill (icCoventry, 11 October 2004).

BBC, 13 June 2004 *

The body of a man who was shot dead was found in an alleyway in Clapham, south London.  Officers from Operation Trident are investigating the death.

Sheffield Today, 12 June 2004

Robin Brabben and a 17-year-old friend were sentenced for firing an air rifle and a starting pistol at a group of teenagers who were surrounding their flat in the Lowedges estate in Sheffield.  One shot hit a 14-year-old gang member.  Brabben received an 80-hour community order.

This is Devon, 11 June 2004

Stephen James was sentenced to a six-month home curfew after pleading guilty to having firearms without a licence.  The Plymouth man had a pistol and ammunition and a rifle with ammunition and a silencer and scope.  He had fired the rifle into his garden from a first-floor bedroom.

BBC, 10 June 2004

A workman escaped with minor injuries after being shot with an air rifle.  The incident happened in the Stamp End area of Lincoln.

BBC, 10 June 2004

Three separate firearms incidents were reported in Nottingham in less than 24 hours.  In Radford shots were fired and later a firearm was let off outside a pub.  In Bestwood a woman was shot outside her home as she held her 13-month-old son.  The victim needed treatment at the Queen's Medical Centre; her son escaped uninjured.  A local man was later charged with attempted murder and two firearm offences.

PA News, 10 June 2004

Richard Jan, the man described by the police as "Britain's worst stalker", kept a loaded airgun at his house.

icBrimingham, 9 June 2004

At Birmingham Crown Court Adrian Carberry denied attempting to murder a woman during a gun battle in a Birmingham street.  The victim received a shotgun wound when a car passenger exchanged shots with a gang in an alleged revenge attack.  Carberry was given a six year sentence.

Morecambe Today, 9 June 2004

Neighbours concerned about a controversial house for young people in Morecambe have complained, amongst other things, about a youth firing an airgun pellet through the window of a house.

The Sentinel, 9 June 2004

Michael McGraw was sentenced to eight months in prison after pleading guilty to two counts of affray.  He had fired an air rifle with a telescopic sight at a car that was being driven outside his home in the Longton.

BBC, 8 June 2004

Two sawn-off shotguns and 20 rounds of ammunition were found during a police raid near a travellers' site in Hartley Wintney, Hampshire.

National Newspapers, 7 June 2004 *

Two sisters were shot dead and their mother seriously hurt when a man opened fire with a .410 shotgun at a back garden barbecue in Highmoor Cross in Oxfordshire.  Two young children of one of the sisters witnessed the attack.  The estranged husband of one of the dead women was later charged with two counts of murder: he killed himself whilst on remand.   Thames Valley Police later apologised for the 64-minute delay in attending the murder scene, a delay that was deemed unjustifiable by the Independent Police Complaints Commission (Guardian, 7 October 2004).  An internal review concluded the delay was down to failings in training and national policy, which emphasises locating the perpetrator rather than getting to the victims (Guardian, 22 February 2006).  Georgie Gibson, who gave first aid to the victims, has been presented with a bravery award at the Provincial Police Awards: she went to their aid after hearing shots fired (BBC, 20 June 2007).

Epping Forest Guardian, 6 June 2004

A spate of air rifle and ball-bearing gun attacks has been reported in the local area.  Police have investigated nine incidents in Roydon, North Weald, Ongar and Theydon Bois.  In one incident in North Weald a nine-year-old boy was hit in the back of the neck, in another in Ongar an eight-year-old was shot with a BB gun.  Other victims have been hit and windows have been hit by pellet guns.

BBC, 5 June 2004

An 11-year-old was shot in the stomach with a BB gun as he walked in Winchester.  He suffered severe pain.  His attacker is believed to be about 14.

BBC, 4 June 2004

A shop assistant in Inkberrow, Worcestershire, was threatened with guns by youths who stole cash and cigarettes.

icBirmingham, 3 June 2004

A 16-year-old, who brandished an imitation firearm in a shopkeeper's face during a failed robbery attempt in Selly Oak, was warned that had he been older he would be facing five years in prison.  The youth claimed that the robbery was a prank.

BBC, 3 June 2004 *

A teenage girl was taken to hospital after being shot in the eye with a BB gun in Leysdown, Kent.  She was later discharged but may still lose her eye.

Daily Mirror, 2 June 2004

A man was shot in the head after a minor parking accident.  He was shot in front of his partner and young children near his home in Tottenham.  It appears that the men he had argued with summoned the gunman who arrived as a passenger in a separate car.  Two men were later sentenced to 25 years in jail (see February 2005 incidents).

PA News, 2 June 2004 *

A girl, aged 13, was in a critical condition after being shot in the face with an air rifle.  She was playing with a group of young people in a field in Charnock Richard at the time of the incident.  A 12-year-old boy was arrested and released on police bail (BBC, 2 June 2004).

East Anglian Daily Times, 2 June 2004

Joshua Palmer, 7, was shot in the face with a BB gun as he stood talking to a friend on his doorstep.  His mother said it was lucky that Joshua had not lost an eye and complained about yobs who terrorise innocent villagers in West Bergholt.  The chairman of the local Parish Council would be raising the issue of BB guns with the community police officer.

BBC, 2 June 2004

Thieves stole a box containing eight weapons from a house in Lakenheath.  The cabinet contained four air rifles, three 12-bore shotguns and a 16-bore shotgun.

This is Hull, 1 June 2004

A man was charged by police with possession of a firearm, possession of a firearm when prohibited for five years and handling stolen goods after an armed siege in Bridlington.

This is Devon, 1 June 2004

A 10-year-old boy needed surgery to remove an airgun pellet from his arm.  He was hit while walking along a road in Tiverton.  A man had been arrested.

itvAnglia, 1 June 2004

Shots were fired from what was thought to be a shotgun at a window in Kettering.  A man shouted a name then fired the gun before running off.

BBC, 1 June 2004

Two men were due to appear before magistrates charged with offences following reports of gunshots near the Seagrave Horse Fair.  One man was charged with possession of firearms with intent to endanger life.

BBC, 1 June 2004

A 14-year-old boy was shot in the leg with an air rifle whilst he walked in a public park in Marske, Teesside.  Surgeons had to remove a .22 from his left thigh.  The victim, Robert Calderwood, joined calls for tightening laws on access to airguns (Evening Gazette, 9 June 2004 ).

Cambridge News, 29 May 2004

Darren Russell, who carried out three gunpoint robberies in Cambridge and Sawston, was facing a lengthy prison after his trial.  He admitted possessing an imitation firearm.

PA News, 28 May 2004

A 15-year-old boy was left with a steel pellet lodged just millimetres from his spine after being hit in the neck by an air rifle gunman.  A shot was fired from a car whilst the boy was with friends in a park in Eltham.

South London Press, 28 May 2004

Police were trying to trace a man wanted in connection with a shooting in Walworth.  The victim was shot in the thigh.

Evening Chronicle (Newcastle), 28 May 2004

A 17-year-old has lost the sight in one eye after being shot with an airgun.  A pellet became embedded in his right eyeball.  He was in his house in Ryton when the shooting occurred.

Richmond & Twickenham Times, 28 May 2004

A gunman robbed a general store in Kingston, taking £200 takings.  The teenage shop assistant was terrified .

Doncaster Today, 27 May 2004

A pupil at Thorne Grammar School was expelled after two of his fellow pupils were injured by a BB gun he took into the playground.

Comet (Stevenage), 27 May 2004

Police officers, some of whom were armed, surrounded a block of flats in Stevenage after reports that a man carrying a gun had been spotted.  A toy handgun was discovered close to where a car, which the police had earlier tried to stop, was found abandoned.

News Shopper, 27 May 2004

A thirty minute battle involving youths armed with a firearm, machetes and baseball bats took place outside a pub in Heston, Middlesex.

Streatham Post, 27 May 2004

A guard was forced to hand over a case containing £40,000 outside Abbey building society in Clapham High Street.  The robber was armed with some sort of handgun, according to police.

Croydon Guardian, 26 May 2004

Nehemiah Taylor admitted having a gun during a firearms incident in Streatham.  He claimed it was only in his possession for 10 seconds, but he was sentenced to a year in prison.

Grimsby Telegraph, 26 May 2004

A 21-year-old man, who was found by an ambulance crew in Nunsthorpe, was in a critical condition after being shot in the head.  Paramedics had to carry the gun found at the scene in their ambulance because police were not there.

Reuters, 25 May 2004

Iain Davis was found guilty of a double murder in January 2002.  He had shot the disc jockey at a party in Hackney and the bullet had hit another partygoer who also died.  He was given a life sentence. 

PA News, 24 May 2004

During an attack on a 21-year-old in a Holloway flat, a gunman shot one of his accomplices.  A bullet meant for the victim's brain merely 'grazed' his scalp, but hit the other man's groin.  Marvin McIntyre, who was hit, and Jay Sawyers were appearing in court.  Both denied attempted murder and of causing grievous bodily harm with intent and possessing a prohibited firearm with intent to endanger life.  Both men were remanded after being found guilty (PA News, 11 June 2004)

BBC, 24 May 2004

A man was arrested after reports of a man in possession of an air rifle in King's Lynn.  Norfolk Police cordoned off the area and recovered two deactivated firearms.

Evening Mail (Birmingham), 24 May 2004

Police said that a 14-year-old was a split second from being shot when he pointed a BB pistol at armed police in Winson Green.

BBC, 21 May 2004 *

Mother-of-two Hayley Davenport was found shot in the head in her home in Wolverhampton.  She had died from a single gunshot wound.  A man appeared before magistrates in December 2004 accused of killing her was found guilty of her murder and has been jailed for life (see September 2005 Incidents).

Luton Today, 20 May 2004

During an attempted robbery on a bank in Luton a cashier was threatened with an handgun whilst a masked man demanded cash.  He was forced to leave empty handed after the alarm bell sounded.

BBC, 20 May 2004

A man was arrested near Stowmarket on suspicion of possessing an illegal firearm.

This is Nottingham, 20 May 2004

Aseet Hussain, Emaan Altaf and a 16-year-old youth were found guilty of attempted murder after two shots were fired at their victim in Sneinton.

BBC, 20 May 2004 *

Derrick Senior was shot and seriously injured in Basford, Nottingham, only days after four white men were jailed for attacking him in a pub.  The attack is believed to have been an act of retribution.  A man has been convicted for attempted murder and for the murder of another man in Basford in February 2004 and has been sentenced to a minimum of 35 years in jail (see May 2007 Incidents).

BBC, 19 May 2004

A man armed with a pistol threatened a cashier before making off with money from a building society branch in Hoveton, Norfolk.

BBC, 19 May 2004

A man was killed and another injured in a shooting at a car wash in Old Swan, Liverpool.

Evening Standard (London), 18 May 2004

Dean Davis, 13, was accidentally killed when one of his friends put a gun to his head and pulled the trigger as a "prank".  The friend, Renelle Coke, was sentenced to two years in prison after pleading guilty to manslaughter and possessing the weapon, a Valtro 8000FS pistol, which had been brought to the house in Walthamstow by another teenager.

Evening Gazette (Middlesbrough), 17 May 2004

A 13-year-old girl from Eston, Teesside, was shot in the head by youths armed with an air rifle.  A pellet lodged in her nasal bone, half an inch from her right eye.  The youths, aged around 14, were apparently all dressed in camouflage clothing and carrying rucksacks and sleeping bags.  A police spokesman said that the girl "could easily have been blinded or worse".

BBC, 16 May 2004

The BBC reported the funeral of Andrew Boland who was shot dead in front of his family when masked men burst into his home in Stretford in March.  Four men have been arrested in connection with his death.  The investigation continued into January 2006 with police raiding a house in Sale (see Incidents).

South London Press, 14 May 2004

Daniel MacKenzie was jailed for eight years for a number of offences including robbery and possession of a firearm.  He had pulled a small brown handgun and demanded money from a taxi driver as he was being driven around Camberwell.

Press Association, 13 May 2004

Ipswich Town footballer Darren Bent was questioned by police after being arrested on suspicion of possession of an imitation firearm with intent to cause violence after a 12-year-old boy was shot with a ball bearing gun.  The boy was struck as he played near his home in Kesgrave.  Later in the month Bent was questioned after a second youngster claimed to have been shot.  Bent was given a caution but did not face charges (East Anglian Daily Times, 14 June 2004)

This is Bristol, 13 May 2004

Paul Pearson appeared at Bristol Crown Court charged with robbery and possession of an imitation gun with intent to cause fear after a robbery at a fast food takeaway in Weston-super-Mare.

BBC, 13 May 2004 *

A man was shot dead by police in Thornton Heath, south London.  They were trying to arrest him after he had failed to appear in court to face firearms charges.  A handgun was found.

BBC, 13 May 2004

Two men were seen standing on the roof of a building firing at people in the street below in Clifton, Bristol.  Three men were arrested and an air rifle was taken away from the house.

BBC, 13 May 2004

A man wielding what appeared to be a small handgun was being hunted by police after a raid at a Reigate bookmakers.

ITV, 13 May 2004

A teenage car passenger was shot in the shoulder as he was travelling through Grimesthorpe, Sheffield.

Evening Mail (Birmingham), 12 May 2004

The casualty department of Birmingham's City Hospital was sealed off following a brawl which led to a gun being discovered in a car.  No bullets were fired.

PA News, 11 May 2004

A spate of attacks has taken place on services on the Severn Valley Railway.  In one incident near Bewdley tunnel four youths were seen shooting an air rifle at trains.  Other incidents have involved stone throwing.

Bath Chronicle, 10 May 2004

A man brandishing a black handgun stole thousands of pounds in cash in a raid on a building society in the centre of Bath.

icCoventry, 10 May 2004

Armed police swooped on a multi-storey car park in Leamington after reports of teenagers firing an air pistol at cars in the street.  One car had several pellet marks on its bonnet.  Police sealed off roads for two hours during the incident.

Evening Star, 8 May 2004

Damage estimated to be around £1000 was caused to a furniture store in Ipswich - three panes of glass were dotted with holes apparently made by ball bearings fired from a fake gun.

BBC, 8 May 2004

A man armed with a gun attempted to rob a petrol station on the A21 in west Kent between Tonbridge and Pembury.

icCoventry, 8 May 2004

James Christie of Coventry was sentenced to 14 years' imprisonment after committing an armed robbery on a post office.  He claimed he was forced into holding up the post office by loan sharks to whom he owed £15,000.

Richmond & Twickenham Times, 7 May 2004

A man was left with minor injuries to his chest following a suspected airgun attack in Brentford.

BBC, 7 May 2004

Armed police were called to a house in Tunbridge Wells after reports of a man with a gun inside the house.  Following a siege he threatened police as he left the house.  The police responded by firing a baton gun at him.  After being arrested, the man was treated in hospital for minor injuries.

BBC, 7 May 2004 *

A man died after being shot several times while sitting in a car in the Radford area of Nottingham.  A man will serve at least 25 years in jail after being found guilty of murder (BBC, 18 July 2005)

BBC, 7 May 2004

Two handguns, thought to be replicas, were uncovered by police at a house in Scarborough after a man was arrested for apparently pointing a handgun at an ambulance crew.

Journal (Newcastle), 5 May 2004

A man was shot and sustained leg wounds in a drive-by shooting in Benwell.  The passenger of a Volvo opened fire on the victim.

BBC, 4 May 2004

A man died in hospital after being fatally wounded in a shooting in Fallowfield, Greater Manchester.

Guardian, 4 May 2004

A cyclist shot and killed another cyclist after a disagreement in Handsworth, Birmingham.

itv.com, 4 May 2004

A 10-year-old pupil at Our Lady's Primary School in Hereford pointed and fired a ball bearing gun at a classmate.  The pupil has been excluded from the school.

BBC, 4 May 2004

Police shot and killed a 53-year-old man during an incident at Lewannick near Launceston, Cornwall, after being called to what is being described as a domestic incident.  It was later reported that the man had been armed with several knives but was not carrying a firearm.

BBC, 2 May 2004

After a five-hour armed siege at a pub in Harbury, Warwickshire, police officers were allegedly confronted by a 35-year-old man armed with an air rifle.  The man is due to appear before magistrates charged with firearms offences.

Harrogate News, 30 April 2004

Thieves stole a .22 calibre AGS air rifle and a 2ft metal hunting crossbow during a raid on a house in Harrogate.

BBC, 29 April 2004

Following reports that a man was waving an air rifle around in Gosforth a police office shot a man in the stomach with a plastic baton round.  The man, who was registered as being blind, was hospitalised but was later released.  He was then taken under arrest to a police station.

Sheffield Today, 29 April 2004

A teenager underwent surgery after sustaining several gunshots to the body after an incident in Fir Vale.  His condition was described as 'stable'.  Police are treating the incident as attempted murder.

Evening Post (Reading), 27 April 2004

Armed police were involved in a tense six-hour stand-off with a gunman who refused to leave a strip bar in Reading.  A 39-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of firearm offences.

Evening Chronicle (Newcastle), 27 April 2004

A woman was shot and wounded in the legs when a gunman blasted the front door of a house in Byker.  It was the second shooting in the Newcastle area in less than 24 hours. 

BBC, 26 April 2004

A fatal shooting occurred after an altercation outside the World's End pub in the King's Road in south-west London.

Times, 26 April 2004

In a series of raids in East London police seized cocaine, cash and an arsenal of weapons.  The raids took place in Newham.  Fifteen guns were recovered from one address.

Cambridge News, 24 April 2004

Armed police officers were alerted after a gang was seen on CCTV playing around with two replica guns in Cambridge city centre.  The weapons were BB guns.  The six men, who were in their early to mid-twenties, were released without charge.

BBC, 24 April 2004 *

Police are investigating a murder after a man died from gunshot wounds after a shooting incident in Little Hyde, Shephall near Stevenage.  A man and a woman, the victim's wife, have been convicted of murder.  They were told they would each serve 30 years in prison (BBC, 12 May 2005).

BBC, 24 April 2004

A  man is due before magistrates after he was charged with an offence relating to possession of a firearm after a raid on a house in Gainsborough.

South London Press, 23 April 2004

Lephonso Thompson, who was caught by police on the Myatts Field Estate in Brixton, was in possession of a cocked Brocock pistol which had been converted to fire live ammunition.  He has been jailed for two years for possessing a semi-automatic pistol.

icLondon, 23 April 2004

Wayne Murray, who pulled out a gun and aimed in at a clubber's face at a Croydon nightspot, has been jailed for four-and-a-half-years.  The weapon was a blank-firing pistol, expertly converted into an active weapon.  When armed officers found it in Murray's car they also recovered a stash of bullets hidden inside a handbag.

BBC, 23 April 2004

People in the wards area of Manchester Royal Infirmary were threatened by what appeared to be a gun during an incident that took place on a Friday afternoon.  No shots were fired and nobody was injured.  Over the next few days three people were arrested on suspicion of firearms offences.

Daily Record, 22 April 2004

Two boys from Blackpool have been placed on anti-social behaviour orders after stalking local streets firing ball-bearing guns at people.  The order bans them from having BB guns or associating with each other until they are 17.  One boy, aged 10, is the youngest child in Britain to be placed an ASBO.

Evening Mail (Birmingham), 22 April 2004

Jerome Thomas, from Jamaica, was sent to a young offenders institution for six years after being caught in a Birmingham flat with a loaded gun, a converted pistol which had one bullet in the chamber and seven other in the magazine.  He claimed he had found it in a park.

Telegraph, 22 April 2004

Toni Zito, a US air force weather analyst, has appeared before a court martial after a mini-arsenal of guns and ammunition was found at her home in Downham Market.  She was legally registered to own the four handguns, two rifles, a pump action shotgun and 1500 rounds of ammunition at her former home in Texas, and blamed her husband for bringing over the gun which had been bought for her "personal protection".  She was found guilty of negligently derelicting her duty in allowing the guns to be imported.

Guardian, 21 April 2004

Two men were shot in an execution-style shooting in Redcliffe Gardens, near Earls Court in London.  Galal Hamza, who was shot in the forehead died the next day.  His friend who was shot in the groin is recovering in hospital.  Police are looking for three men.  In June 2005 Daniel Turvey was jailed for life for the murder (see Incidents).

Liverpool Daily Post, 20 April 2004

The paper reported that police chiefs are devising a strategy to crack down on illegal gun factories in Merseyside.  Police shored a store of firearms seized after the arrests of three men who had set up their own gun factories in Everton and Kensington.  The men were given jail sentences between four years three months and six years.  They turned a replica into a gun in just 20 minutes.  The weapons seized included handguns, rifles and a crossbow.

icBirmingham, 20 April 2004

A man, who was targeted during a dispute with a gunman in Aston, narrowly escaped serious injury after a bullet struck part of his clothing.  Five shots were fired.  The gunman fled in a Rover 800.

Evening Chronicle (Newcastle), 20 April 2004

Three boys, aged 12 to 13, were shot at in a drive-by air rifle attack by two men in a Ford Escort in Workington.

BBC, 19 April 2004

Staff members at the Great Yarmouth Town Football Social Club  were threatened by two men armed with a gun and a knife.  The raiders made off with alcohol and money.

Evening Mail (Birmingham), 19 April 2004

Two armed raiders, one brandishing a handgun, escaped with cash thought to run to thousands of pounds from Boots in Birmingham's Bullring.  The robbers tied up two men and two women staff members.

BBC, 17 April 2004

During a raid on a post office in Hastings an armed robber produced a gun and shot at the security screen before fleeing the scene empty-handed.

PA News, 16 April 2004

Following a shooting incident at a gun club in Sunderland a man was taken to hospital with a head injury.  The man later died in hospital.  At the subsequent inquest it was revealed that Eric Karlson was suffering from schizophrenia but had been granted a gun licence earlier in the year.  There are calls for a public inquiry.

BBC, 16 April 2004 *

A man was shot dead as he parked outside his house in Ponders End, north London.  He stumbled to his front door but died from a shot to the chest.  Three people have been arrested in connection with the murder (BBC, 12 January 2005).

BBC, 16 April 2004

A gunman raided a bank in Dartford High Street, getting away with £1600.  Staff fled to a secure room to escape the gunman.

Independent, 15 April 2004

A former airport security official sparked an alert when he flew into Heathrow airport carrying dumdum bullets in his jacket pocket.  The bullets were spotted on a scanner.  His flight had originated at Dulles airport in Washington where there should have been stringent checks.  He was given a jail sentence.

BBC, 14 April 2004

A gang of robbers, one wielding a gun, attacked security guards outside a building society in Gillingham, Kent.

PA News, 14 April 2004

A teenager appeared at the Old Bailey after accidentally killing his friend when 'playing around' with a loaded gun.  Renelle Coke of Leytonstone did not realise the gun could go off as he placed it to the victim's head.  A 9mm bullet caused severe brain damage from which he died.

Huddersfield Daily Examiner, 14 April 2004

Huddersfield's armed response unit and a police helicopter were called to Honley after two teenagers brandishing a fake gun sparked an alert.  The two boys were charged with possession of an imitation firearm.  A police spokesman said "Carrying an imitation firearm is not a good idea, because the police can't tell if it is real or fake until they examine it closely."

This is Bradford, 14 April 2004

Airgun pellets smashed two windows on a Keighley Community Transport minibus.  The incident came six months after two buses operated by Keighley & District Travel were targeted and had windows smashed in the same area of the town.  Elsewhere in the Bradford area street cleaners have been subjected to a series of airgun attacks as they have gone about their work.

BBC, 13 April 2004

Three people were shot with air pellet rifles within an hour of each other in Salford.  The victims were a teenage girl and two men, one of whom was cycling.  The teenage girl was taken to hospital for treatment and the cyclist received a puncture wound to the back of his head.

Sutton Borough Guardian, 13 April 2004

A mother was shot in the ribs in an airgun attack while she was helping her young children into the family car in Sutton High Street.  Susan Nye was left with bruising and swelling.  Police said the weapon was a BB gun.

Liverpool Echo, 13 April 2004

A teenager, Michael Singleton, was shot dead at an acquaintance's home in the Kirkdale area of Liverpool.  He had run into the house while being chased by the killer.  Three men were arrested and then released by police investigating the shooting.  Ten days later the BBC reported that a firearm, believed to be the murder weapon, had been found in Kirkdale.

The victim was the second person to die in a gun-related incident in the city in a week: Craig Barker, also 19, was shot several times, when the car he was travelling in was attacked near Everton, and died later in hospital.   A suspected gangland hitman was arrested in September (Liverpool Echo, 1 September 2004).

BBC, 9 April 2004

A man was found with gunshot wounds to his chest in a car park at Highnam Woods near Gloucester.  He was taken to hospital with life threatening injuries.

North Devon Gazette & Advertiser, 7 April 2004

A 0.22 air rifle and ammunition were stolen from a van when  it was broken into in Barnstaple.  A police spokesman expressed his concern at such items being left unattended.

This is Leicestershire, 7 April 2004

Following an incident in Sproxton, near Melton Mowbray, Gregory Wilson appeared in court accused of having a firearm with intent to endanger life.  He denied possessing a .177 Webley air pistol and making a threat to kill.

This is Nottingham, 7 April 2004

Police appealed for information after an 18-year-old turned up at the Queen's Medical Centre, Nottingham, with a bullet wound in his leg.  The victim said he had been shot in the city centre but refused to cooperate with the police.

This is Nottingham, 7 April 2004

Kevin Murray was jailed for eight years at Nottingham Crown Court after a traffic check led police to find hard cash, Ecstasy and guns.  Murray had a stun gun in a pocket in the driver's door.  In another car at his home police found a loaded Beretta handgun, and a number of rounds of 7.65 and 9mm ammunition were discovered in the house.

Journal (Newcastle), 7 April 2004

Carl Barnsley, a university student, was jailed for five years after being caught stockpiling an arsenal of illegal weapons in his home in Boldon Colliery.  His hoard included a stun gun, an imitation Kalashnikov rifle, tear gas pellets and three air pistols, one of which had been adapted to fire live rounds, plus hundreds of rounds of prohibited ammunition.  He was arrested after customs officers intercepted a parcel of military-style expanding bullets he had ordered from the US over the internet.  He later lost an appeal to have his jail term cut (Evening Chronicle, 13 November 2004)

BBC, 6 April 2004

Armed police officers were called to Blencow, near Penrith, after receiving a report that a gun had been fired at a car.  A man gave himself up and was released on police bail.

Eastern Daily Press, 4 April 2004

Michael Carroll, a lottery jackpot winner, was arrested and questioned in connection with the discovery of firearms and ammunition at a house in Downham Market.  In a later report The Mirror described how neighbours had seen him brandishing a handgun.

Sheffield Today, 3 April 2004

Four teenagers were sentenced to a total of 40 years behind bars for masterminding a gangland shooting on the Park Hill estate in Sheffield.  Adnam Hashi, who admitted shooting the victim with a silver gun, received 14 years in a Young Offenders Institute.  When police raided his home they discovered an arsenal of guns and ammunition.  The crime was linked to drug dealing.

Independent, 3 April 2004

Tania Moore, a local riding instructor, was shot dead after her car was forced off a country lane just outside the village of Longford, near Ashbourne in Derbyshire.  Detectives believe the killer tried to cover up the murder by staging an accident.  Mark Dyche was found guilty of the murder in May 2005 (Guardian, 13 May 2005).

BBC, 3 April 2004

CCTV pictures of a man were published after he was caught on camera brandishing a handgun during a failed robbery in a Cambridge store.

Daily Record, 3 April 2004

After attempting to smuggle a loaded .22 gun disguised as a pen onto a jumbo jet at Heathrow Airport, Tonny Dalvang was jailed for six years at Isleworth Crown Court.

South London Press, 2 April 2004

A man who held a starting pistol to a restaurateur's neck as he sat behind the wheel of his car has been jailed for three years.  Junquira Simoes and his accomplice Flavio Videira ambushed their victim whilst he was driving through Camberwell.  Videira had been fighting with the victim and had threatened to shoot him the day before the incident.  Commenting on the crime weapon, the judge said "I appreciate it was an imitation but people who see these types of weapon are absolutely terrified".  Simoes had pleaded guilty to possessing an imitation firearm with intent to cause fear of violence.  Videira was also convicted and was due to be sentenced later.

Evening Mail (Birmingham), 2 April 2004

A shopkeeper and his pregnant wife are to be honoured after tackling a raider at their Spar store in Rednal.  The man was armed with a knife and an illegally converted ball-bearing gun.

Wimbledon Guardian, 1 April 2004

A 29-year-old man was arrested and charged with possession of a firearm with intent to cause fear or violence after an incident in Wimbledon.

Sheffield Today, 1 April 2004

In a string of attacks on buses in the Athersley area of Barnsley, vandals armed with air rifles and bricks left 19 vehicles with broken windows.  Passengers' lives were put at risk as air rifle pellets smashed through windows.  So much damage was caused and so many vehicles affected that services were disrupted throughout the following day.

Peterborough Now, 1 April 2004

After another attack on a bus, this time in Whittlesey, shards of broken glass were strewn across the top deck.  It is thought that an air rifle was fired at the vehicle.

Norwich Evening News, 1 April 2004

A mother, whose son was shot in the eye with a pellet from a ball-bearing gun, warned other parents about the dangers of these weapons.  The incident occurred whilst the 12-year-old was playing in Spixworth.

BBC, 31 March 2004

Two people were shot at while in their cars in the Aston area of Birmingham.  One person suffered minor injuries from the shattered glass of the car window.

Nottingham Evening Post, 30 March 2004

Police were hunting two groups of youths after a shooting near a pub in the centre of Nottingham.  Shots had been fired from a silver sports car at people sitting near the pub.

BBC, 30 March 2004

A man has been charged with criminal damage, possessing an offensive weapon and an offence under the Firearms Act after armed police were called to the RSPCA animal home in York.  Paul Lovie was later jailed for 15 months for the attack with a samurai sword and an air rifle.  He claimed to be distraught when his dog was diagnosed as being terminally ill (Guardian, 27 May 2004)

BBC, 30 March 2004

A 15-year-old boy was charged with possession of a firearm and causing actual bodily harm after a Bristol bus driver was shot in the face.  The incident took place in Hartcliffe.

BBC, 30 March 2004

A man was taken to hospital after a shooting in the West End of Newcastle-upon-Tyne.  Police found a burn-tout vehicle in Gateshead which they believe was used in the incident.

Liverpool Daily Post, 29 March 2004

Armed police officers arrested a man in Clubmoor, Merseyside, on suspicion of attempted murder and grievous bodily harm with intent.  He was arrested in connection with a number of shootings at the beginning of the month in Vauxhall.

BBC, 28 March 2004

After a shooting outside a pub in Moss Side, Manchester, the victim was taken to hospital with gunshot wounds.

itv.com, 28 March 2004

A man was recovering in hospital after being shot outside a Nottingham nightclub where a woman was shot dead two years ago.  A brawl broke out in the nightclub which then spilled into the street.  Shots were heard at around two in the morning.

AOL News, 26 March 2004

John Walker of Great Bealing, Suffolk, was convicted of murder after admitting shooting his wife at their home.  His wife was killed with a single shot from a 12-bore shotgun as she ate her breakfast.  He has been given a life sentence.

Guardian, 25 March 2004

A group of media-studies students from Leeds Metropolitan University sparked a huge police alert as a result of a fake armed robbery which they were filming as part of a short film module.  Shoppers had reported "armed men" skulking behind the Arndale Centre in Crossgates.  The students' guns were toys, but the police emphasises how they had put themselves in real danger and repeated previous warnings about imitation weapons.  The response by West Yorkshire police was very expensive.

BBC and Evening Mail (Birmingham), 23 and 24 March 2004

Edwin Hayward, who took a loaded gun into a Birmingham nightclub, was given a 200-hour community service order.  The sentence was criticised by MPs Steve McCabe, who has campaigned for stiffer penalties for firearms crime, and Khalid Mahmood, who called the sentence absolutely disastrous.  The judge's stance appeared totally at odds with Birmingham Crown Court's previously stated tough stance on gun crime.  Richard Wakerley QC, then Recorder of Birmingham, had said that gun crime would be met with long sentences..

Guardian, 23 March 2004

A teenager, Anton Hyman, was shot in the back then stabbed through the heart before his dead body was dumped in the river Brent in Greenford, west London.

BBC, 22 March 2004

A man armed with an imitation firearm was shot by Hampshire police with a baton gun after an incident in Locks Heath.  Anthony Osbourne has been charged with possessing an imitation firearm in a public place.

Rochdale Observer, 17 March 2004

Residents on the Lower Falinge council estate in Rochdale are having their lives made miserable by airgun crime.  In the past fortnight incidents had been reported in which: A woman on disability benefits narrowly missed being hurt by a youth firing an air rifle on two occasions; a pellet was fired through the window of a child's bedroom; a pet dog was killed by a single shot through the eye.  After the last incident it is reported that the dog's owner, a pensioner, was told by police "It's only a dog.  We have more important things to deal with".

Waltham Forest Guardian, 16 March 2004

The newspaper reported finding guns for sale in a shop window in Leytonstone High Road   On display were a replica Uzi sub-machine gun air pistol, a gas powered CO₂ air pistol and two handgun-style air pistols.  The guns are no illegal weapons, but residents and local leaders are outraged at the window display, describing it as irresponsible and appalling.  Local councillor Terry Wheeler said "We should not be in a situation where real or fake guns are on display in a window and people can see them, especially impressionable young children and teenagers".

BBC, 12 March 2004

A man was arrested after police officers and members of the public were threatened with a pistol in the Gungate area of Tamworth.  A man was arrested, and a knife and a ball-bearing gun were recovered.  He was charged with being in possession of a firearm with intent to endanger life.

Sunderland Echo, 11 March 2004

Police sealed off a block of house in Hendon, Sunderland after a community had been terrified by reports of a gunman in their streets.

Runcorn Weekly News, 11 March 2004

A man opened fire on a group of teenage boys on a Runcorn housing estate.  Two brothers, aged 13 and 17, were targeted as they walked with friends.  The man screamed abuse and took potshots from what is thought to have been an air rifle.  One victim required hospital treatment.  Cheshire Constabulary said that an armed response unit was deployed to the incident.

Evening Gazette (Middlesbrough), 12 March 2004

Postman Conrad Schwab felt he was about to be shot when 21-year-old Daniel Ward chased him down a Stockton street armed with an imitation firearm.  Ward had not been taking his medication for paranoid schizophrenia and had sniffed three or four cans of lighter fuel.  Ward confronted the postman as he delivered a letter to his home.  Mr Schwab believed the gun to be real.

Isle of Wight County Press, 10 March 2004

The paper reported a series of airgun attacks on the Isle of Wight.  Three people were hit by pellets in attacks in Sandown with one victim having a pellet removed from his nose.  Two youths have been arrested.  In Carisbrooke airgun pellets have damaged windows at Trinity Middle School and St Mary's Church.  Police say they will be robustly enforcing the law on imitation firearms and air weapons with new powers granted under the Anti-Social Behaviour Act.

BBC, 10 March 2004 *

A man is on trial charged with murder and attempted murder.  The court heard that a woman was killed and her boyfriend injured when they were targeted in a "planned execution" in Bexleyheath, south east London, in March 2003 in retaliation for a car-jacking.

BBC, 7 March 2004

A man was found shot dead in Tottenham, North London.  Police believe he had been chased in his car and then on foot by up to two men after an argument outside a fast food restaurant in Tottenham High Road.  After searches a 29-year-old woman was arrested on firearms offences.  Syron Martin was found guilty of manslaughter but cleared of murder in June 2005.  Martin has been living in fear of his victim after being kidnapped by him (PA News, 29 June 2005).

Sheffield Today, 6 March 2004

Craig Sutcliffe started a four-and-a-half year prison sentence after shooting Majeed Jamil Ahmed in the stomach during a racist attack in Darnhall.  Sutcliffe, who had a previous conviction for possessing an air rifle, brandished an air rifle with a sight and silencer during the attack on the victim's home.  He admitted racially aggravated assault occasioning actual bodily harm and possessing a firearm with intent of causing fear of violence.

icCoventry, 6 March 2004

A handgun and rifle were seized by police during a raid on a house in Coventry in which amphetamines and cannabis were also recovered.  The raid was part of Operation Final Flourish.

BBC, 6 March 2004

A gunman on a bicycle attacked a man in his car in Bootle.  The car and the bike then crashed into a lamppost.  Police believe the shooting could be the result of a gang feud.

Hemsworth News, 5 March 2004

A 16-year-old from South Elmsall was hit by an unseen attacker behind Minsthorpe Community College.  Doctors at Pontefract Hospital found air rifle pellets lodged in his neck only millimetres from his jugular.

BBC, 5 March 2004

Rogers Jackson from Islington was sentenced to nine-and-a-half year in jail for shooting and stabbing a motorist whom he wrongly accused of cutting him up whilst he was cycling.  In one attack Jackson fired a ball bearing from an imitation firearm which hit his victim just below the right eye.  In a second attack the victim was stabbed with a knife.

Lynn News, 5 March 2004

A 77-year-old widow  was left terrified by a sniper with a high-powered airgun who fired two shots into her front door in Swaffham.

icBerkshire, 4 March 2004

Two youths, armed with an air rifle, fired four shots at Langley Fire Station during the early hours of the morning startling crew members who were working in the appliance bay.

icCoventry, 4 March 2004

A 15-year-old girl could lose the sight in one eye after being shot with an airgun in Willenhall, Coventry.  The teenager was walking along the road when she felt a sharp pain in her right eye and found blood coming from a wound.

National Newspapers, 3 March 2004 *

A jury in Leeds found former security guard Barry Elener guilty of murdering Tasawar Hussain, who was shot dead during an attempt to stop Elener and his father Derek (who admitted murder) following an armed raid in Manningham, Bradford, in January 2003.  Both convicted men had previously carried out robberies using firearms.  The victim was given a posthumous award for bravery (BBC, 21 May 2003).

Sunderland Echo, 3 March 2004

An airgun pellet smashed the living room window of a house in Pennywell, Sunderland.

BBC, 1 March 2004

Peter Riches, a former councillor in East Lindsey, Lincolnshire, was jailed for pointing an air pistol at the head of a schoolboy.  The judge told Riches that anyone who put other people in fear by the use of firearms had to serve a sentence of imprisonment.

BBC, 1 March 2004

A man was shot in the leg after a masked man forced his way into a house in Kettering.  The intruder fired a shotgun at the victim who was taken to hospital suffering serious injuries.

BBC, 28 February 2004

Five people were arrested after a disturbance at a pub in Smethwick in which a gun was fired.

Evening Chronicle (Newcastle), 27 February 2004

Criminals were warned by a judge that they would be jailed if caught carrying stun guns.  Police had seized a cache of 64 outlawed Korean Panther high voltage weapons, which a Longbenton man was trying to trade on the internet.  Stun guns are designed to cause muscle spasm, shock, loss of balance and confusion, and Parliament has provided for a maximum sentence of 10 years for carrying such guns.  Andrew Taylor had sold only five of the guns before the website he was using emailed him to say the weapons were banned.

Leicester Mercury, 27 February 2004

Thieves stole six guns from a farm near Market Bosworth.  The weapons, which were taken from a locked safe, were a semi-automatic rifle, an air rifle, a pump action air rifle, two double-barrelled shotguns and a single-barrelled shotgun.  The thieves also stole jewellery and other personal property.

Hounslow Guardian, 27 February 2004

A 19-year-old man who had collapsed suffering from stab wounds in Brentford High Street's McDonald's was found to be in possession of a Taser gun.  The Taser stun gun is a section one prohibited weapon, under the Firearms Act.  The man told police he had taken the gun from his assailants.

Sheffield Today, 26 February 2004

Rival gangs from Stannington and Middlewood have been involved in confrontations in the area of Coronation Park, Oughtibridge, Sheffield.    During a search of the park, police found a cache of weapons including an air rifle.  The police promised to implement a high profile presence over the next few weeks.

This is Exeter, 25 February 2004

A man, who had barricaded himself inside a house near Branscombe in east Devon, was arrested on suspicion of firearms offences.  During a search of the house police discovered a shotgun and an air rifle.

BBC, 23 February 2004

After a shooting at an address in Stretford a 25-year-old woman had to undergo an operation on her left leg in Manchester Royal Infirmary.

BBC, 22 February 2004

A man was injured during an evening shooting in Leicester.  The victim was taken to hospital but his injuries were not thought to be life-threatening.

BBC, 22 February 2004

A 13-year-old boy, injured at an old quarry at Carlton Husthwaite near Thirsk, died soon after being rushed to York District Hospital.  Police confirmed that he had died from a gun shot wound.  Another person was helping police with their inquiries.  Police eventually charged a man and a boy with attempting to pervert the course of justice and firearms-related offences (BBC, 21 June 2004).  See incidents for December 2004.

This is Local London, 20 February 2004

The passenger of a red BMW was forced from a car and gunned down in Kingston in the early hours of the morning.  Six men were arrested after the gangland style shooting.  Detective Inspector Steve Cassidy wanted to reassure the people of Kingston that these incidents are rare in the borough.

Evening Post (Nottingham), 16 February 2004

Four people were arrested during a police operation (Rosebowl) to crack down on gun crime.  Checkpoints were set up around Bulwell and Bestwood.  Although no one was found in possession of a gun the operation was hailed as a success by Nottinghamshire police.

Evening Post (Bristol), 13 February 2004

A cash reward has been offered to help police find the person who shot an airgun at a bus in Bedminster.  There were reports that a woman had been cut by shards of glass.

BBC, 13 February 2004

A man and a woman who raided a Leicester supermarket using an imitation firearm were convicted of robbery at Leicester Crown Court.

Grimsby Telegraph, 11 February 2004

Anthony Sherer, a Second World War and battle re-enactment enthusiast, was caught with a massive stockpile of guns and ammunition at his Grimsby home.  Among the weapons discovered was a loaded 9mm Beretta pistol hidden underneath a mattress.  Sentencing him to nine months jail, the judge said that "The message has to be sent out that courts do regard the possession of firearms illegally as a very serious offence".

Evening Gazette (Middlesbrough), 11 February 2004

The paper reported that local police chiefs had welcomed a ban by the Advertising Standards Authority on an "irresponsible" promotion for air guns in the Daily Sport.  An advert had offered a "semi-automatic assault rifle, automatic assault rifle, Colt Uzi rapid fire gun and a Beretta air machine pistol".  The company that placed the advert was Cheshire-based Bulldog Telecom.

Guardian, 11 February 2004 *

A man was shot as three men fled from the Nationwide Building Society in Birmingham city centre during an armed raid.  The victim was shot in the left arm and the bullet went into both his lungs.  He died in hospital.  Police said that he may have tried to tackle the thieves.  A man has been jailed for life for the murder.  He had also shot and seriously injured a retired policeman  in August 2005 (see November 2007 Incidents).

Evening Post (Nottingham), 9 February 2004 *

A man died after being shot in the car park of a pub in Old Basford, Nottingham.  An eyewitness reported that the victim had been involved in an argument inside the pub and the dispute spilled outside.  Someone suddenly pulled out a gun and shot the victim.  A man has been convicted for murder and for the attempted murder of another man in Basford in May 2004 and has been sentenced to a minimum of 35 years in jail (see May 2007 Incidents).

Herald Express, 7 February 2004

William Shepherd, described by a judge as a volatile man with a low flashpoint and suspect temperament, had his appeal against the revocation of his firearms certificate dismissed.  When police raided Shepherd's home in Paignton they found two illegal handguns and a considerable quantity of ammunition.  During a second raid explosives were discovered.  He told the court that he needed his rifles for shooting deer, foxes and rabbits and that shooting was his hobby.  The judge told him that he was not a fit person to have a firearms licence.

BBC, 7 February 2004

Two men sitting in a parked car were shot at by a hooded gunman in Pellon, Halifax.  One victim was shot in the leg, the other received an injury to his arm.  One man had been arrested but police were looking for another man in connection with the incident.  The police said it appeared to be a targeted attack.  In May 2005 a man was sentenced to 15 years jail (see Incidents).

Sheffield Today, 7 February 2004

A farmer and former British Champion Clay Pigeon shooter was banned from keeping firearms after telling police that he needed his guns "for his own protection".  Anthony Booth had originally lost his shotgun and firearms certificates when he was given a nine-month jail sentence in 1998 for an unrelated criminal offence.  Booth made his comment about needing guns for his protection after gunmen had attacked his farm at Aston.  The presiding judge dismissed Mr Booth's appeal saying that he would prove "a danger to the public and peace" if he was allowed to have weapons.

Sheffield Today, 6 February 2004

Benjamin Layne, 22, was jailed for eight years after being stopped by police in Netherthorpe estate whilst carrying a loaded Derringer pistol inside a plastic bag.  The pistol had been modified to fire live rounds instead of blanks.

BBC, 6 February 2004

Armed police officers were called to an address in Rutland after a woman was shot at a house.  The victim is in a serious but stable condition.  A man was charged with possessing a firearm with intent to endanger life.

icBerkshire, 5 February 2004

A teenage boy was arrested on suspicion of assault following a shooting in Wokingham in which two girls were injured.  Both victims were hit by air pellets; one sustained a head injury.

BBC, 5 February 2004

A gunman opened fire on a group of about 20 teenagers gathering outside a family party in Brockley, south-east London.  A 16-year-old has a bullet still lodged inside him and is still having treatment.

BBC, 5 February 2004

A security man was shot outside a nightclub in Shaftesbury Avenue in central London.  He was shot after he'd intervened between a customer and a member of staff.  Two shots are believed to have been fired, but the second victim, who appeared to be hit in the stomach, left the scene before the police arrived.

Evening Gazette (Middlesbrough), 5 February 2004

A Middlesbrough teenager was warned that he faced custody after being found guilty of robbing a student at gunpoint.  The student was robbed of £15, a mobile phone and cigarettes after being forced to his knees.  Gavin Wudinge, who told police he was drunk, said he'd told the victim that "it was a toy gun and I didn't want anything from him".

BBC, 4 February 2004

Amanulla Turk admitted possessing an imitation firearm with intent to cause fear of violence.  The former bus driver was caught after an incident in Syston, Leicester, when he shouted at another driver through his bus window before revealing a BB pistol.  He was sentenced to 140 hours of community punishment with £150 costs.  However, the judge said "I don't want it to be thought that anyone who carries a weapon of this sort on to the streets of Leicester will not immediately be sent to prison, because they will."

Evening Gazette (Middlesbrough), 4 February 2004

Six people were arrested after an incident in Middlesbrough during which a youth got out of a car and began shooting with a firearm.  More shots were fired from the car as it was driven away.  The incident prompted an armed response by police.  A gas-powered pistol and pellets were later recovered from the car.

BBC, 2 February 2004

A Securicor van was held up in Norwich by a man armed with a small black pistol.  The gunman made off with two bags containing about £2000.

Watford Observer, 28 January 2004

A minicab driver was shot nine times in the throat and chest with an air rifle in Canons Park, Edgware, after he went to collect an unpaid fare from a customer.  Two pellets lodged in his throat and he needed treatment at Northwick Park Hospital.  Two people have been charged.  Christopher Stokes was sentenced to eight years' imprisonment for grievous bodily harm and ordered to pay £10,000 to the driver (The Press, 7 October 2004).

BBC, 28 January 2004

A man, who had been shot in the face, was found wandering on waste ground in Ancoats, Manchester.  He required surgery to remove fragments of a bullet from his nasal cavity.

Sunderland Echo, 28 January 2004

Two men, wearing khaki-style jackets and trousers and armed with a shotgun, used a 15-year-old Sunderland boy for target practice.  The boy was shot in the leg.

National Newspapers, 26 January 2004

After a trial that highlighted the dangers of permitting the sale of deactivated guns William Greenwood and his son Mitchell Greenwood were found guilty of conspiracy to convert deactivated firearms to live weapons.  From a shop in South Wingfield, Derbyshire, they sold supposedly safe AK47 rifles, Uzi sub-machineguns and pistols but told customers that these could easily be restored to use.  They offered "starter kits" to enable customers to convert their buys back to a usable condition.  Eight of the guns were later used in murders, and police have linked 218 weapons to the underworld and shootings.  Both men have been jailed for seven years.

Guardian, 26 January 2004

A policewoman escaped with minor injuries after a drive-by shooting in Leytonstone, east London.  A number of shots, from what is believed to have been a semi-automatic pistol, were fired from a passing car as she was questioning the occupants of another car.

BBC, 24 January 2004

A man was arrested for possessing an imitation gun on a bus.  This was believed to be the first arrest under new legislation making it an offence to carry an imitation firearm in public.  Police had been alerted by the bus company after the gun was spotted by members of the public in Eastbourne.

Evening Gazette (Middlesbrough), 23 January 2004

Teenagers brandishing imitation handguns caused a major armed police operation in Middlesbrough town centre.  The weapons were believed to be pellet-firing BB guns.  A police spokesman said that the incident highlighted "an example of youths obtaining handguns and firearms in local shops and using them to cause distress to the public".

Evening Chronicle (Newcastle), 20 January 2004

Three 16-year-olds were arrested after firing an air rifle at passers-by on a busy street in North Shields.  The shots were fired from an upstairs window.

Sheffield Today, 20 January 2004

Gunmen opened fire on a two-storey maisonette in Pitsmoor whilst a 4-year-old was asleep upstairs and his mother was sitting in the lounge.  One bullet broke a reinforced window pane.  Two men were seen running off.  Following the incident the woman and child were given police protection.

BBC, 19 January 2004

A 12-year-old boy, David Platt from Ancoats, Manchester, received an anti-social behaviour order (Asbo) after firing an air pistol at a number of people.  A neighbourhood warden was hit in the neck; ball bearings were fired at a city council surveyor and a joiner.  He was banned from carrying weapons.

BBC, 16 January 2004

Firecrews who were called to tackle a car fire in Nuneaton were approached by a man who threatened them with a machete and fired a replica handgun over their heads.  A 35-year-old man was being questioned by police.

The Journal, 16 January 2004

Scott Hunter, 18, caused a major alert when he was seen wandering the streets of Battle Hill wearing combat fatigues and carrying a number of imitation weapons including an assault rifle, a handgun, a repeater pistol and an Uzi sub-machine gun.  The equipment had been bought at an Army and Navy Surplus store for £480, which Hunter had stolen.

Evening Chronicle (Newcastle), 14 January 2004

A 13-year-old terrorised staff at Whiteleas Way Children's Home in South Shields by threatening them with what turned out to be a BB gun.

Manchester News, 12 January 2004

A teenager was shot dead outside the Zaku Cafe in Moss Side.  Nureni Mumin Sheikh, from London, is understood to have been in the area for a wedding.  He was confronted by a group of men outside the cafe.  Police were seeking two suspects.

National Newspapers, 10 January 2004

Robert Workman, a retired lieutenant colonel, was killed in the doorway of his home in Furneux Pelham, Hertfordshire.  The police investigations were widely reported.  The colonel was shot with a 12-bore shotgun; the ammunition (SG, 8.4mm diameter) was not widely available or commonly used, according to police.

Evening Chronicle (Newcastle), 9 January 2004

Wayne Myers, 18, took an air rifle shot at a girl of three whilst shooting randomly from his bedroom window in Dudley, North Tyneside.  In Magistrates Court he admitted assault and was given a 46 hour attendance centre order and ordered to pay £400 compensation to the girl and £300 costs.

BBC, 7 January 2004

A six-year-old unwittingly aimed a loaded gun at his brother after finding the weapon in a garden.  The boy had picked the gun out of a bus and brought it into his aunt's house in Coventry with his finger on the trigger.

Guardian, 7 January 2004

A car passenger was left in a serious but stable condition after being shot whilst stuck in traffic in Cricklewood, north London.

National Newspapers, 7 January 2004

A coroner's court was told that Jason Gifford was pointing a replica pistol as he lunged at a police officer with a Samurai sword outside his Aylesbury home.  A police marksman fired a shot at Gifford, who was fatally wounded.  It appeared that Gifford wanted to "go out in a blaze of glory".

icTeesside, 6 January 2004

Police ended a four-hour siege in the village of Cotgrave, near Bingham in Nottinghamshire, by firing rubber bullets at a man who had held two people hostage in a flat.  The man was allegedly armed with an airgun and was due to be questioned by detectives on suspicion of possession of a firearm and public disorder.

Guardian, 6 January 2004

World kickboxer champion Chris "Sledgehammer" Ballard was found shot dead at his home in Lower Earley near Reading.  According to police, he may have shot himself.

BBC, 2 January 2004 *

A man was shot dead and a teenager seriously injured after a gunman opened fire in a pub in Norris Green, Liverpool.

---

SCOTLAND

Evening Times, 30 December 2004

An armed robber threatened staff at a Glasgow bookmakers before escaping with hundreds of pounds

Edinburgh Evening News, 27 December 2004 *

A teenage shop assistant in Tranent was assaulted by a man armed with a handgun.  Steven McFarlane, 17, took a fake gun from his father's Second World War re-enactment collection.  He admitted assaulting and robbing the shop assistant and breaching firearms regulations (Edinburgh Evening News, 4 August 2005).

Edinburgh Evening News, 27 December 2004

A teenager fired an airgun pellet into the cab of a bus being driven through a housing estate in Dalkeith.  The pellet narrowly missed the driver.

Daily Record, 27 December 2004

A driver was attacked with a paintball gun during a drive-by incident in Hamilton.

Evening Times, 16 December 2004

A gun was found buried in a retail park in Renfrew.  It was unclear how long the weapon had been hidden but it was believed to have been weeks rather than months.

Edinburgh Evening News, 16 December 2004

Armed police swooped on a primary school in Broomhouse after reports of a woman carrying a gun outside the building.  Hundreds of children and parents were held inside the school.  An hour later police raided a flat opposite the school entrance and took away a man for questioning.  A replica firearm was removed.

Record, 15 December 2004

Lloyd Brown, a Royal Marine, was jailed for two-and-a-half years after he brought an AK47 assault rifle back from Iraq.  Brown, from Hamilton, was caught on CCTV as he threw the gun into a river.

Telegraph, 8 December 2004

An estate factor was shot by a member of a Royal shooting party on the Balmoral Estate.  In an incident that Buckingham Palace described as a "minor shooting incident" the victim was sprayed with lead after one of the shooting party fired a stray shot.

Edinburgh Evening News, 6 December 2004

Police recovered a cache of deadly-looking replica guns from a flat in Holyrood, near the Scottish Parliament.  The guns included a realistic looking fake machine gun and a collection of 16 replica handguns.  Police have questioned a man but no charges have been brought.  A week earlier a Colinton man was charged with owning a potentially dangerous firearm which he bought over the internet.  Police had found five replica guns, including a Glock 17 handgun, a Beretta pistol and a copy of a police-issue MP5 Carbine.  The Glock is a prohibited weapon with the potential to be converted to shoot real bullets.

Evening Times, 6 December 2004

A bookmakers in Bothwell was targeted by a man who threatened staff with what the police described as a handgun.  He fled when his demand for money was refused.

Grampian TV, 6 December 2004

A teenage girl was shot with an airgun on the doorstep of her home in Elgin.  She was hit in the chest as she went to put rubbish in a bin.

BBC, 2 December 2004 *

Highland Council have suspended a teacher at Grantown Grammar School during a legal row over his firearms licence.  Stewart Nicoll, who has been accused of making controversial comments in class on subjects like race, slavery and firearms, went to court in an attempt to get back his five shotguns and two rifles.  A sheriff has now ruled that, while he was unfit to own a rifle, he would be allowed to keep his shotgun certificate.  Police are examining the court ruling (BBC, 5 May 2005).  Nicoll is to be struck off by the General Teaching Council for Scotland after being found guilty of professional misconduct at the school (Scotsman, 21 December 2007).

Daily Record, 30 November 2004

John McGuire, who was thrown out of a Chinese restaurant in Paisley for racist abuse returned armed with an air rifle.  He threatened to shoot members of staff.  He later pointed the gun at police.  Sentence was deferred after he admitted shouting racist abuse and weapons charges.

icRenfrewshire, 29 November 2004

A man held up a bookmaker's in Paisley with what appeared to be a firearm.  No shots were fired.  A description of the man has been released.

Scotsman, 29 November 2004

A bank manager has died after being shot three times in the head by a caller at his home in Nairn.  Detectives have confirmed that a handgun found in a drain near the scene was the murder weapon (PA News, 23 December 2004).

Evening Times, 22 November 2004

Two teenagers, Jack Dunsmore and Kevin Holland, shot at a 14-year-old boy with an air rifle as he as walking into the playground of Larkhall Academy.  The boy was forced to flee but was left with severe bruising to his leg and was seriously shaken.  The perpetrators were both former pupils.  Both are facing jail sentences after admitting possessing the air rifle and firing it at their victim.

Evening Times, 25 November 2004

A man and a woman were being sought after a gun raid on a chemist's in Hyndland in the west end of Glasgow.  Staff were threatened before the robbers grabbed cash and ran out.

Edinburgh Evening News, 20 November 2004

Jason Davies and Michael Chamberlain were found guilty of abduction and attempted extortion after they had ambushed a woman in an Edinburgh home.  They demanded £20,000 before forcing her into a dark cupboard.  One of the men had a pistol, the other a stun gun.  Davies, a former paratrooper, was given a five-year sentence. 

Evening Times, 17 November 2004

Eleven-year-old Scott Heap was buried following a family funeral.  Scott was shot in the eye in the bedroom of his home in Barlanark, Glasgow (Sunday Mail, 31 October 2004) and died four days later.  He and a school friend were playing with an air pistol.  The friend was apparently not aware there was a pellet in the pistol and put it against the boy's face and pulled the trigger.

Scotsman, 12 November 2004

A man was in a serious condition after being accidentally shot whilst deer stalking near Bridge of Gaur by Loch Rannoch.

Edinburgh Evening News, 4 November 2004

Dean White was jailed for eight years for attempting to rob the Murrayfield Post Office armed with a handgun and a hammer.  White was tackled by the postmaster and fled from the scene.  The gun turned out to be a Russian-made air pistol.

Evening Times, 4 November 2004

Mark Moncrieff, 18, appeared in court and admitted a firearms offence after he had pointed a replica gun at a woman as she sat in her car in the east end of Glasgow.

AOL News, 1 November 2004

Four men were gunned down in a street in the east end of Glasgow.  Richard Holmes died in hospital, the other three were all injured.  A masked gunman walked up to them as they were standing at a footpath next to Royston Library and fired a number of shots at them.  The attack is believed to have been a gangland vendetta: it is thought to have been the fourth attempt on the victim's life since he was acquitted of a killing in 2001.  A man was jailed for 18 years for the shooting (see October 2005 Incidents).

Edinburgh Evening News, 29 October 2004

Firefighters were ambushed in Musselburgh whilst answering a call to put out a bonfire.  One member of the crew was shot with an airgun, the pellet hitting him in the leg after penetrating protective clothing.  Other crew members were stoned.

icWestLothian, 22 October 2004

Vandals who targeted and damaged breast screening unit caravans in Blackburn, Dedridge and Armadale have, amongst other things, fired airgun pellets through the units' windows.

National Newspapers, 21 October 2004

An RAF sergeant shot and killed himself after arming himself with a high-powered rifle which may have been taken from a guard at the security gate of RAF Kinloss.  The discovery of his body ended a 10-hour security alert at the base.

PA News, 17 October 2004

Police launched a murder inquiry after a man was shot dead in Slatefield Street, in the east end of Glasgow.  The victim was shot with a sawn-off shotgun. John Greig was later jailed for 15 years for culpable homicide (BBC, 29 March 2005).

Evening Times, 16 October 2004

Bryan Niven, aged 16, was sent for trial charged with reckless conduct and committing firearms offences in Kilmarnock.  He is accused a firing an air rifle in a residential area close to a nursery.  He is also charged with underage possession of an air weapon, carrying it uncovered in a public place and committing the alleged offences on bail.

Mirror, 13 October 2004

Three men were arrested at the Forth Road Bridge on firearms charges, hours before the Queen was due to open the new Scottish Parliament.  Searches were made in Aberdeen in connection with the arrests.  The men faced Aberdeen Sheriff Court on charges of contravention of the Firearms Act 1968 (Herald, 14 October 2004).

Daily Record, 12 October 2004

Malcolm McGougan was jailed for five and a half years after holding police at bay with an air rifle during an 18-hour siege in Campbeltown.  He claimed to have been protesting his innocence over a sex assault.

Grampian TV, 8 October 2004

A young girl was shot in the neck with what was believed to have been an airgun.  She was walking along a road in Kincorth, Aberdeen.

Daily Record, 5 October 2004

Paul Bryceland appeared in the High Court in Glasgow accused of killing a teenage mother from Paisley by shooting her in the head with a shotgun (see Evening Times, June 2003).  He was found guilty of murdering his girlfriend and will serve at least 18 years in jail (BBC, 8 October 2004).

Express, 2 October 2004

Tayside Police's attempt to remove the gun licence of a serial drink-driver was rebuffed by a court ruling.  Adam Gordon of Glenfarg was allowed to keep his gun licence despite the view of the police that "A person who has shown that he is prepared to be irresponsible with a car may be assumed to be equally willing to behave irresponsibly with a gun when under the influence of alcohol".  However, the Sheriff Principal Dunlop claimed that "Mr Gordon has used firearms for more than 20 years.  He is a very good shot".

Scotland on Sunday, 26 September 2004

A gamekeeper on an estate near Peebles is attempting to get his firearms certificates back after an incident in which he was cleared of removing a bird of prey from its next.  He had his shotgun and firearms certificates revoked after police officers spotted a weapon and ammunition in his unattended Land Rover.

Daily Record, 24 September 2004

Ronald McDonald denied a series of offences, including gun offences, allegedly committed during a three day rampage in Fife.  He barricaded himself in the Secret Bunker, Scotland's former nuclear bunker near Anstruther, arming himself with deactivated firearms with which he threatened police.  He used an imitation firearm to resist arrest.

icWestLothain, 17 September 2004

Dedridge Health Centre in Livingston has been subject to attack by vandals, some as young as five.  In one incident a secretary narrowly avoided serious injury when the window beside her desk was shattered by an airgun pellet.

Evening Telegraph and Post, 15 September 2004

Police were hunting a man who fired shots into the air in the driveway of a house in Perth.  He them sped away on a motorbike.  No one was injured in the incident.

Evening Times, 11 September 2004

Derek Monaghan was jailed for four-and-a-half years for stealing a bottle of whisky from an off-sales in Kilwinning.  Monaghan was armed with a weapon which he admitted was a pellet gun.

Evening Times, 8 September 2004

Two schoolboys have been suspended from Bearsden Academy after brandishing a pellet gun at fellow pupils. 

Evening Times, 8 September 2004

A man was pinned to the ground by police after reports of a man spotted with a gun in Coatbridge.  He and two other men were being questioned.

Edinburgh Evening News, 8 September 2004

Lothian and Borders Police say that the 37.5 percent rise in the number of times police were given clearance to draw their guns was not a clear indicator of rising gun crime: many of the incidents were accounted for by dozens of incidents involving replica, air and fake guns reported in Edinburgh.

Edinburgh Evening News, 6 September 2004

A gunman threatened a shop worker during a raid on an off-licence in Edinburgh.  The man was carrying what appeared to be a black handgun.

Sunday Mail, 5 September 2004

A man suffering from arthritis deliberately wounded himself in the hand with a 12 bore shotgun at a clay pigeon range in Methlick, Aberdeenshire.  Police were considering a charge of reckless discharge of a firearm.  After a court appearance in May 2005, Alexander Bain was sent to a psychiatric hospital (Daily Record, May 10 2005).

Daily Record, 31 August 2004

A man was chased down a street in Sandyhills, Glasgow by a man wearing a dressing gown who then shot him in the face.  The victim was taken to hospital with gunshot wounds.

Scotland on Sunday, 29 August 2004

Police are trying to establish whether there is a link between an attack on a remote bungalow at Heights of Brae, near Dingwall, when shots were fired through a living room window, and the shooting of three horses at Alness two days later (see Incidents Involving Animals).

Edinburgh Evening News, 26 August 2004

A man, who was caught carrying an air rifle in a street in Blackburn, was due to appear in court, charged with possession of an imitation firearm.

BBC, 20 August 2004

Paul Murray, who shot a police constable inside Shettleston police station, had his sentence increased from 10 years to a life sentence by appeal court judges.

icDunbartonshire, 18 August 2004

Three men appeared in court in connection with the death of a man in Glasgow.  One is held over alleged firearm offences.

icRenfrewshire, 13 August 2004

James Kerr appeared at Paisley Sheriff Court after he dropped a gun whilst leaving the toilet on a train from Paisley and Johnstone and alarmed passengers.  The police found an imitation gun stuck in the front of his waistband.  Kerr was placed on probation for a year.

Evening Times, 28 July 2004

Paul Edmonston, who threatened people in a flat in Govan with an imitation handgun, was given a second chance by the High Court judge and given a deferred sentence for a year.

Evening Times, 16 July 2004

A Maryhill resident described how her family's front door had been kicked in as they slept and teenagers had broken into the flat, stolen children's presents and shattered windows with air rifle shots.

BBC, 13 July 2004

Roy Graham was sent to jail for two years for pointing a replica gun at motorists who had complained about his driving.  The incident took place in Paisley.

icPerthshire, 9 July 2004

Kris Stevenson of Crieff took pot-shots at two people with a powerful air rifle as they walked along a street in the town.  Both victims were left with small puncture wounds.  He was jailed for six months.

icWestLothian, 8 July 2004

Armed police were engaged in a siege with a man who claimed to be armed with a gun in a 12th floor flat in the Niddrie district of Edinburgh.

Sunday Mail, 4 July 2004

An armed robber forced a shopkeeper to open the safe at gunpoint during a raid in Linlithgow.

Daily Record, 30 June 2004 *

When Nicola Sterling was arrested for drink driving in Broughty Ferry police found she had a pistol, which looked like a remote control for a car's locking system, in her knickers.  She escaped a jail sentence and was given a deferred sentence of one year (PA News, 26 July 2004).  In July 2005 she was admonished (BBC, 26 July 2005).

icRenfrewshire, 22 June 2004

Robert Smith, who kept an antique double-barrelled pistol at his Paisley home, was jailed for 30 months.  The gun had been used in an armed robbery.

Edinburgh Evening News, 12 June 2004

Armed police laid siege to a Dalkeith house for four hours after reports of an air rifle being brandished.  A man and a woman were charged with firearms offences.

Sunday Mail, 6 June 2004

A masked man threatened a member of staff of a post office in Houston, Renfrewshire, with what appeared to be a firearm during a hold-up in which a four-figure sum of money was taken.

Daily Record, 3 June 2004

A gunman opened fire on two groups of people in drive-by shootings in Camelon, Falkirk.  A group of women were standing outside a supermarket and a group of men were outside a chip shop.

icAyrshire, 23 May 2004

An robber, armed with a gun, made off with drugs from a chemist's in Govan.

Evening Times, 6 May 2004

James Bryce, out on licence from prison, threatened to shoot a mother in the driveway of her home in Dunoon.  The woman ran off but an off-duty policeman noted the registration number of Bryce's car and he was arrested three days later.  At the High Court he admitted assault by presenting a handgun at his victim, threatening to shoot her and demanding entry to her home with intent to rob her.

Edinburgh Evening News, 5 May 2004

Two women were left terrified after being showered with glass when an airgun was apparently fired at the window of a train as it passed through Wallyford station.

Edinburgh Evening News, 5 May 2004

Following reports of a teenager firing a gun in the streets of Edinburgh's Old Town armed police brought the city centre to a halt.  A Dutch teenager, a member of a visiting rugby squad, was arrested.  He was carrying a BB airgun.

icDumfries, 5 May 2004

A firefighter, driving a heavy fire engine, was struck in the face by an airgun pellet whilst travelling through Dumfries.  The pellet was probably fired through the open passenger side window before rebounding into the face of the driver.  His passenger and a police spokesman both commented that the incident could have been much worse as the driver could have lost control of the 24-tonne vehicle.

Sunday Mail, 2 May 2004 *

Craig McGhee, 23, of Kinning Park was shot dead in Shettleston.  Although there were initial suggestions that the shooting was linked to a power struggle among rival gangs in Glasgow's east end, the victim was shot be a complete stranger.  A man has been found guilty of murder and faces a life sentence (see February 2007 Incidents).

BBC, 1 May 2004

Two men, one carrying a firearm, confronted Brinks Security guards outside the Bank of Scotland in Glasgow's Park Circus area and stole a six-figure sum from the security van.

Daily Record, 29 April 2004

At Glasgow High Court, Joe Craig, of Drumchapel, admitted possessing a replica Walther PPK, converted to fire a missile, without holding a firearms certificate.

Evening Express (Aberdeen), 22 April 2004

Jamie Urquhart fired an air rifle through the bathroom door at his partner.  He was also accused of putting the rifle in his mouth and threatening to kill himself and frightening his finance, although his not guilty plea was accepted.   At Aberdeen Sheriff Court Urquhart was fined £200 and the air weapon was confiscated.

Sunday Mail, 18 April 2004

Masked attackers opened fire with a shotgun on two men driving in the east end of Glasgow.  Their car was riddled with pellets after a red Audi A6 had pulled out in front of them.  The men then chased the attackers at high speed along the M74, but were eventually pulled over by the police.

Evening Times, 8 April 2004

In what was believed to have been a gangland execution, Duncan Harrison was forced to drive a car to a quiet cul-de-sac in Springboig, in Glasgow's east end, before being killed by a shot in the head.

Daily Record, 6 April 2004

Graeme Sturrock attempted a raid on the Menzieshill Post Office in Dundee armed with an air pistol he'd bought from a second shop. After staff refused to hand over any money he went back to the second shop and demanded a refund for the gun because it was defective.  He admitted carrying out attempted armed robbery.

BBC, 6 April 2004 *

A man died after a shooting at a social club in Drumoyne, Glasgow.  A man has been arrested and was in police custody.

Daily Record, 5 April 2004

In a report, which described how one in three disabled Scots face repeated assaults, one victim described how she had suffered years of torment from neighbours including having an air rifle pointed at her and being told "You make a good target". 

Evening Times, 26 March 2004

Armed police entered a block of flats in Ruchazie, Glasgow, where a man had threatened to shoot himself during a seven-hour siege.  The man's wife and teenage daughter were also in the flat.  The man was eventually led away in handcuffs after the police had managed to talk him round.

Evening Times, 23 March 2004

In Calton, Glasgow, a gunman shot at a teenager who was uninjured but badly shaken.  The gunman is thought to be 20 years of age.  Earlier the same evening a man was threatened by a gunman in Craigend.

News of the World, 21 March 2004

In another incident in Calton a 19-year-old was shot in the back with a shotgun whilst walking home.  He was hit by hundreds of pellets, and will be scarred for life as surgeons have had to leave nearly 40 pellets in his body.

Sunday Mail, 14 March 2004

Morrison Gunn from Pollokshields, Glasgow, who had his gun dealership licence cancelled in 1997, has taken the Scottish Executive to court in an attempt to get his licence back and for the return of 35 guns seized by police from his then home in Monaughty near Forres.  The Executive have been forced to admit that Grampian Police broke the law in their attempt to remove Gunn from the Register of Dealers, but a spokesman for the Justice Department is quoted as saying that under no circumstance would he be able to get his hands on the weapons.  These included Magnums, a Ruger pistol, Remington rifles, shotguns, two Armalite semi-automatic assault rifles and 2500 rounds of ammunition.  Gunn, who changed his name from McAdam, was a big game hunter.

Scotland on Sunday, 14 March 2004

A man was shot in the back in Millroad Street in the east end of Glasgow late on a Friday evening.  Strathclyde Police would not comment on whether they were exploring a gang connection with the attack.

Belfast Telegraph, 11 March 2004

Two men appeared in court in Perth facing charges relating to the discovery of nine shotguns and several bags of ammunition in a house in Auchterarder.  One of the men is a PSNI officer from Northern Ireland who was accused of breaching his firearm licence.  The house was the home of the second man who was charged with leaving ammunition in various insecure places and failing to comply with conditions by leaving nine shotguns in insecure places.

Herald, 3 March 2004

Michael Johnston, owner of the Carnoustie Golf Course Hotel, has been charged with illegally keeping a firearm at the hotel.  He is to go to trial.  The shotgun should have been stored in a fireproof storeroom on an industrial estate in Broughty Ferry.

Edinburgh Evening News, 2 March 2004

Shada Akhtar, a shopkeeper in Leith, was shot with an airgun during an armed robbery.  A youth held the gun to her head, but when she refused to open the till he grabbed some cigarettes before firing the gun and fleeing with an accomplice.

Herald, 16 February 2004

A man was shot in the leg at point-blank range in Carmyle, Glasgow, in an incident that the police are treating as attempted murder.  The victim was in hospital in a serious but stable condition.

Scotsman, 14 February 2004

Jennifer Gray, a 13-year-old pupil at Peterhead Academy, had to be taken to hospital after she was struck in the eye by an air-gun pellet while at the school.  A third year pupil has been suspended.  The gun involved was a BB pistol.

Guardian, 9 February 2004

A 39-year-old died and another was injured in separate shootings in Glasgow.

BBC, 9 February 2004 *

William Gage will serve a minimum period of 20 years before being considered for parole after being found guilty of murdering a man in Cambuslang, Lanarkshire.  The victim was shot in the head and body outside his home in March 2002.

BBC, 13 January 2004

Seventeen-year-old Kyle Boggie was shot in the head with an air weapon in the grounds of Craigentinny Castle, Edinburgh.  An air pellet was removed from his scalp.  A spokesman for Lothian and Borders Police said that if the pellet had struck either the victim's eye or his temple then he would have been seriously injured.  An 18-year-old man was later charged in connection with the incident.

Edinburgh Evening News, 12 January 2004

A man was arrested and charged after allegedly returning to a nightclub in Musselburgh armed with a handgun (later reported to be a replica shotgun), axe and knife.  He had earlier been thrown out of the club.  Russell McNaughton was put on probation at Edinburgh Sheriff Court in October (Daily Record, 8 October 2004)

---

WALES

BBC, 9 December 2004

Four guns were seized by officers in a series of raids in a joint operation between Gwent Police and five English forces, which was targeted at drugs destined for South Wales. 

Western Mail, 27 November 2004

Cardiff Crown Court heard that Janet Colley and John Murphy had threatened neighbours with an air rifle and a pickaxe handle in a dispute over damage to a car.  They were both sentenced to 120 hours' community service.

Wrexham Evening Leader, 26 November 2004

Police and trading standards officers in North Wales have been seizing BB guns from retailers to stop them falling into the hands of youngsters.  Twelve guns were seized from Coed Mawr Market in Greenfield.

Western Mail, 27 October 2004

Four male pupils, aged 13 and 14, were suspended from Olchfa Comprehensive School in Swansea after a boy was shot at with a airgun.  Two pellets were apparently deliberately fired at another pupil, one of them skimming his head.

Express, 2 October 2004

A 10-year-old boy who took a toy gun to school was left distraught after police rushed to his school in Flint.  The gun had been found in his bag.  Rather surprisingly his mother considered the incident to be ridiculous because the plastic balls fired by the gun were not so hard they could cause any real damage (our italics).  This incident was first reported in the Daily Post (28 September 2004).

BBC, 1 October 2004

A worker at a McDonald's drive thru restaurant in Skewen, near Neath, was left badly shaken after being threatened with a handgun during a robbery.  Cash was taken from the till.

Daily Record, 15 September 2004

A boy of 11 pulled an airgun on police in Swansea.  The boy was arrested and later bailed.

Daily Post, 7 September 2004

Hooded gunmen burst into the community hall at Broughton and fired an airgun, frightening a practising band.

Shropshire Star, 2 September 2004

Armed police officers arrested a man after he'd been seen walking past a hotel in Newtown carrying a handgun.  The weapon was an imitation BB gun.

icWales, 2 September 2004

A man was robbed of his mountain bike whilst a gun was pointed at his head by two masked men.  The incident took place between Taffs Well and Gwaelod-y-Garth, Cardiff.

BBC, 22 July 2004

A 14-year-old boy was shot in the arm with what is believed to be an air gun during an incident in the Tremorfa area of Cardiff.  A shot was fired from the direction of a red car that had driven past the boy and his friend.

Sun, 15 July 2004

A vicar was arrested by police after he used a starting pistol to scare pigeons off his roof.  An armed response unit closed off the road and brought in a helicopter.  The Rev Dewi James of Bangor was released but had the pistol confiscated.

BBC, 29 June 2004

Thomas Usher was given three life sentences for a robbery in which he handcuffed a family of four and held a handgun to the father's head.  The robbery took place in Cardiff in December 2003.  When they arrested him, police found a realistic-looking BB gun at his home.

icWales, 19 June 2004

A man brandishing a handgun outside a garage in Cardiff was arrested by police who fired a round of plastic bullets from a baton gun at him.

BBC, 16 June 2004

Cardiff Crown Court heard how Dion Hunter took potshots at passers-by in Barry with a paintball gun fired from a car window.  He admitted three charges of possessing an imitation firearm with intent to cause fear of violence.

Carmarthen Journal, 16 June 2004

Residents in the Glasfryn Estate in St Clears are concerned that the estate has become a hotspot for local yobs.  One youth was seen with a BB gun.

Western Mail, 5 June 2004

After air rifle shots were heard in Brynteg near Wrexham, children had to be kept indoors during school break time. John Wayne Clutton was jailed for two months after he admitted possessing a .22 air rifle when prohibited because of a previous prison sentence.

BBC, 2 June 2004

A man will appear in court charged with allegedly shooting a man in the head with an air pistol in Newtown town centre.  The victim was sitting on a park bench when he was injured.

BBC, 27 May 2004

Four .22 bolt action rifles and four dual-purpose .303 Lee Enfield bolt-action rifles were stolen from a Sea Cadets headquarters in Newport.  A number of other items were taken.

BBC, 24 April 2004

Following reports that a woman was threatened with a gun in the Fairwater area of Cwmbran, an 18-year-old man has appeared before Caerphilly magistrates.

BBC, 20 April 2004

Pensioner Glanmor Griffith appeared in court charged with possession of a shotgun with intent to endanger life.  Armed police had been called to an incident at Cwm Ivy near Whitford Bay, Llanmadoc.

BBC, 19 April 2004

Emily Humpage, a 10-year-old-girl injured by an air weapon, is supporting a police campaign to educate people about new airgun laws.  Emily, from Colwyn Bay, lost part of her vision in one eye and had an operation to remove a pellet from her mouth.

Shropshire Star, 14 April 2004

A man carrying a ball-bearing gun which looked like a handgun was arrested while travelling on a train from Aberystwyth.  The police were alerted by a member of the public who thought the man was armed with a handgun.  Dyfed Powys Police issued yet another warning to people to be wary of carrying replica guns.

BBC, 7 April 2004

Paula Williams went looking for her son at a pub in Nantyglo, near Ebbw Vale, armed with a silver replica Desert Eagle .44 Magnum pistol.  Drinkers at the pub dived for cover as Williams held up the bar.  She was jailed for two years after admitting possessing a firearm with intent to cause fear or violence.

PA News, 29 March 2004

A teenager, Alan Davies, told Swansea Crown Court how he was shot by a pensioner using a modified air rifle.  He and a friend had antagonised Victor John Richards, a neighbour in Pontrhydyfen, after returning home in the early hours of the morning.  Richards responded by aiming a gun and shooting the teenager under his right armpit with a .22 bullet.  The rifle had been modified to fire live bullets.  Richards denied the attempted murder but had previously pleaded guilty to a number of firearms offences including possession of a firearm and ammunition without a certificate.  He was cleared of trying to kill Davies but the jury found him guilty of wounding.  He was later jailed for three years.

Wales on Sunday, 21 March 2004

People were trapped in their homes after a gunman shot at a Spar shop in Blaenavon.  Police reported that ammunition went through the supermarket and affected the butchers shop next door.  In September Jason Watkins admitted a number of charges relating to the attacks (Western Mail, 9 September 2004).  He was sentenced to a two-year community rehabilitation order (Western Mail, 15 December 2004).

BBC, 12 March 2004

A man is due to appear in court at Llandrindod Wells facing charges including making threats to kill and possession of a firearm.  He was arrested at a house in the town.

icWales, 28 February 2004

Thousands of pounds worth of damage has been caused in up to 50 incidents in Caerphilly.  Windows in shops, stores, phone boxes and bus stops have been smashed.  It is believed that the culprit is using an air rifle or a military-style slingshot.

BBC, 22 January 2004

A 16-year-old student was robbed at gunpoint as he walked to college in Llangefni, Anglesey.  One of his attackers pointed the gun at his head whilst the other cut his hand with a knife.  The police were keeping an open mind as to whether the gun was real or a replica.

---

INCIDENTS INVOLVING ANIMALS

Evening Gazette (Middlesbrough), 30 December 2004

A pensioner is disgusted by an attack on his dog in which the animal was shot at point blank range in his back garden in Middlesbrough.  The bullet passed through his pet's stomach, bowel, intestines and spleen.

Cambridge News, 27 December 2004

A pet cat had to undergo life-saving surgery after being shot with an airgun near his home in Soham.

BBC, 22 December 2004

A swan was shot and killed at Cheddar Reservoir in Somerset.

BBC, 21 December 2004

Pet owners in Kent were warned of the dangers of airguns after a cat was shot in Hythe and had to be put down.  The cat had been hit by three pellets, one of which was lodged in his spine.

Chester Chronicle, 17 December 2004

The RSPCA has launched an investigation after the bodies of two blackbirds and a squirrel were found hanging from a tree in Elton.  They had been shot with an air rifle.

icSouthLondon, 14 December 2004

A powerful .22 air rifle was used to shoot a swan that was found dead in Footscray Meadows.  Bexley police and park rangers have mounted a combined appeal to the public to find the person responsible.

Northampton Chronicle, 10 December 2004

A cat was left paralysed with an airgun pellet lodged in its spine.  His owner, from Southfields, has called for an overhaul of the laws, especially those relating to the age at which children can use airguns.

Epping Forest Guardian, 9 December 2004

Two young Epping cats have been subjected to a series of attacks.  The cats have been shot a total of three times, leaving one of them fighting for life.  It is suspected that an air rifle was used.

icBerkshire, 26 November 2004

At least five swans have been killed and another half-a-dozen seriously injured in a spate of attacks using air rifles and other weapons between Romney Lock and Jacobs Island in Windsor.  It is believed that a small number of local youths are responsible.

Daily Record, 25 November 2004

 A pub's pet dog was killed after it had been shot for the sixth time.  Nippy, a Jack Russell, died after being shot with an airgun outside the pub in East Kilbride.

BBC, 15 November 2004

A pony was shot 14 times with an air weapon whilst grazing in fields near Millom, Cumbria.  The animal, which was in an extremely distressed state received veterinary treatment and is recovering.

Watford Observer, 21 October 2004

A cat owner from Garston was left devastated after her pet had to be put down after it was shot in the neck with an air rifle.  The cat suffered massive brain damage.  The bullet used in the attack was apparently much larger than the small pellets often used in airguns.

The Press (North London), 7 October 2004

A rare cat was killed by a shot from an airgun.  Minty, a Bengal cat, was found choking underneath his owner's garden shed in Cricklewood.

Sunderland Echo, 5 October 2004

A dog owner found his pet with two pellet wounds in his head after he'd left him at an allotment in Seaburn to guard chickens.  The dog had been shot seven times in total.

Peterborough Today, 5 October 2004

A much-loved family cat was shot in the head with an air rifle in an attack in Wisbech.  A pellet had lodged in his head, dangerously close to his brain.

BBC, 4 October 2004

A three-month-old calf is believed to have died as a result of wound inflicted by a gun.  Its body was found in a field near Kings Lynn.  Its tail had been cut off.

Bedford Today, 30 September 2004

Smokey, a cat, had to have her front leg amputated after being shot with an air rifle and left for dead.  The incident happened in Houghton Regis.

Scotland on Sunday, 26 September 2004

Twelve pregnant seals were shot by a gunman with a high velocity rifle.  They were discovered on a beach at Burwick on South Ronaldsay in Orkney.  Their skulls had been shattered by the impact of the bullets used to kill them.  Each seal was carrying a pup when they died.

Cambridge News, 24 September 2004

A man carrying a gun, believed to be a handgun, threatened to kill a woman's dog in Haverhill.

BBC, 23 September 2004

The RSPCA said that it is seeing an increase in cats being killed, maimed and losing legs as a result of shootings.  The situation was highlighted when a cat died after being shot four times in the back with an air rifle in Wootton Basset near Swindon.

BBC, 22 September 2004

Fifty dead rabbits were found dead on a roadside near Newhaven.  They had been shot with air rifles, though some did not die instantly and were hit over the head.

Bucks Free Press, 21 September 2004

A cat had a lucky escape after being shot in the leg in Totteridge.  The airgun pellet shattered the cat's humerus.  It was the third cat from Totteridge to be shot this year.

National Newspapers, 29 August 2004

Police are hunting a sniper who shot three horses at a farm in Alness, Easter Ross.  Two horses, a mare and a Shetland pony were dead when found, the third horse is badly injured after being hit by three pullets.  Police were keeping an open mind as to whether the shootings are linked to an earlier shooting incident at a remote bungalow (see Scotland).  Forensic tests are being carried out.

BBC, 28 August 2004

A pony at the Dartmoor Miniature Pony Centre near Moretonhampstead was discovered to have been shot with an airgun.  A vet treating the animal for an abscess found a pellet in her thigh.

Liverpool Echo, 20 August 2004

A teenage boy, one of a group of four aged around 15, shot a cygnet dead with an air rifle as passers-by watched in horror as the boys stalked a group of swans.  The incident took place in Princes Park, Toxteth.

Hartlepool Today, 19 August 2004

A Hartlepool pet owner was distraught when her cat died after being shot with an airgun pellet. Merlin had a pellet lodged in his throat and this had caused a deadly infection in his lungs.

BBC, 17 August 2004

A horse had to have one of its eyes removed after a group of teenagers shot it with a BB gun.  The animal was in a field in Otford, near Sevenoaks.  The group of four boys, aged between 12 and 14, shot at it after they were warned to stay away by a woman who was looking after the horse for its owner.  The woman was also shot at and suffered slight injuries.

BBC, 17 August 2004

Rotherham Borough Council claim that hunters have killed five swans, the first to have been bred at Firsby Reservoir, near Thrybergh.  The authority is concerned about the increase in hunting with guns, dogs and ferrets as well as excessive drinking and vandalism on the site.

This is Gloucestershire, 7 August 2004

Two men who killed nine prized pigeons have been sentenced to 15 months in a young offenders institute and an 18-month detention and training order, respectively.  The pigeons were shot with an airgun after the men broke into a pensioner's pigeon loft in Prestbury.   The pensioner suffered a heart attack after the burglary. 

News & Star, 6 August 2004

A family cat had to undergo emergency surgery after being shot in the Foxhouses Road area of Whitehaven.  The police believe an air weapon was involved.

Daily Post, 3 August 2004

A pet owner has been left inconsolable after the death of her dog Tyson, who was shot by youngsters in Leeswood, Mold.  The dog underwent two operations after being shot in the stomach with an airgun pellet.  The pellet pierced the bowel lining, causing poisoning.

Sunday Sun, 1 August 2004

A widow, who heard shots in the night at her home in Stobswood, near Morpeth, discovered in the morning that her cat had been shot. O'Malley had been hit in the eye with air rifle pellets.  The cat died two days after being operated on.

PA News, 23 July 2004

A seal was found with 30 shotgun pellets in its head off Gravesend.  The seal, which was in a very poor state, was being treated at a Wildlife Centre.

Staines Guardian, 23 July 2004

Local residents in the Staines area have been contacting the paper to complain about youths who have been killing pigeons, swans and ducks.  Air rifles are among the weapons being used.

News Shopper, 21 July 2004

X-Rays on a cat recovered by RSPCA officers revealed six air rifle pellets lodged in the skull and two in her body.  Nigel Gardiner from Eltham, who owned the animal, was given 80-hour community punishment order, a punishment described as "disgraceful" by the owner of a cat sanctuary.  During the attack he had reloaded the single pellet air rifle seven times.   The cat, Sweep, made an astounding recovery.

BBC, 12 July 2004 *

Two sheep have been found shot dead at a farm in Brierton Heights, Hartlepool.  Both animals had been shot between the eyes with some kinds of air weapon.  Two youths were seen on the farm in the week before the killings and each time they were seen they were carrying air weapons.

This in Plymouth, 3 July 2004

Pet owners in Whitleigh were urged to remain vigilant after two cats were shot with airguns.  Misty and Liquorice were left with serious injuries.  A spokesperson for the RSPCA said that they had "received more than 1,100 reports of air gun-related incidents involving small animals between September 2003 and February 2004."

BBC, 2 July 2004

In Merthyr Tydfil, a pair of adult herons is believed to have been shot dead with an air rifle; their young were later found starved to death in the nest.  This follows earlier incidents where another pair of herons and a pair of breeding mallards were found shot.

Sun, 19 June 2004

A cat was hit by pellets from a shotgun which his owner says was fired from the Queen's Sandringham estate.  The incident took place in Great Bircham in Norfolk.

BBC, 16 June 2004

Clyde, a black cat, was shot five times while out on the Eyres Monsell Estate in Leicester.  He did not survive the airgun attack.

BBC, 15 June 2004

A swan had to be destroyed after being shot with an airgun.  The swan, which had been hit twice in the neck, was found at a caravan park in Old Clipstone, Nottinghamshire.  The shooting was condemned by the RSPCA.

BBC, 3 June 2004

A dog was shot and killed with an air rifle on Shellness Beach in Kent.  Police have issued a warning about air rifles and BB guns after this and other incidents in the Leysdown area.  Another dog is reported to have been shot.

Hartlepool Today, 2 June 2004

A horse received a shot in the head with an air gun whilst in a field in Hartlepool.  A pellet had sunk two inches into the right side of Ruben's face, and it is believed that the shot was fired from close range.

Evening Times (Glasgow), 20 May 2004

Police were hunting a gang of teenager who shot a deer and then stamped on its head.  The animal was found lying dead in Cadder, Glasgow.  The youths were seen chasing the deer whilst brandishing an airgun.

BBC, 19 May 2004

Two incidents of lambs being deliberately shot dead were linked by police.  In the latest incident at a farm off the A60 in Nottinghamshire an examination of the animals suggested bullets were used rather than air rifle pellets.  In the previous shooting the animals were killed with a shotgun.

BBC, 18 May 2004

A rare adult osprey was taken into care after suffering two gunshot wounds. The bird was discovered in the North Scarle area near Lincoln.  The BBC also reported that a few days earlier an armed man had been chased away from nesting peregrines in the Peak District.

Scottish SPCA, 17 May 2004

A cat was found cowering on the banks of a canal in Glasgow after being shot several times with an airgun.  The vet who treated Murphy commented that he had obviously been shot at deliberately.

Edinburgh Evening News, 10 May 2004

An airgun attacker has shot dead six racing pigeons on a farm near Livingston, West Lothian.  Two were shot in one attack on the pigeon loft, four in another attack a month later.

Journal (Newcastle), 7 May 2004

A demonstration is planned after the Go North-East bus company received complaints about "unauthorised pest control" at its Stanley depot in Country Durham.  Staff had shot pigeons with air rifles and then stamped on the birds.

Journal (Newcastle), 7 May 2004

A cat who developed a painful back condition and stopped eating was found to have an airgun pellet lodged in her back, close to her spine.  The cat, from North Kenton, Tyneside, was almost left paralysed but has now fully recovered.  PDSA vets said she had been shot with an air rifle.

Doncaster Today, 6 May 2004

A cat was found with horrific injuries from an airgun attack on a roadside at Harworth.  An RSPCA worker called for airguns to be licensed.

BBC, 28 April 2004

Leo, a stray cat, had six airgun pellets lodged in his skull when he was found by a Porth animal charity worker.

Cornish Guardian, 22 April 2004

Residents of Bodmin contributed financial support to help a pensioner pay vets bills after her cat, Sammy, was injured in the leg with a pellet fired from a powerful air rifle.

Telegraph, 22 April 2004

A high court judge has overruled the decision of Humberside's chief constable and permitted Robert Palmer, an amateur deer hunter from Cleethorpes, to use a .44 Magnum revolver.  His "good reason" was the need to kill deer humanely if they seek refuge in dense undergrowth after being wounded by rifle fire.  The chief constable's application for judicial review was rejected by Mr Justice Moses.

BBC, 19 April 2004 *

An escaped snowy owl was found shot dead, shortly after taking up residence near Dunwich on the Suffolk coast.  The owl had probably been shot with an air rifle.

Daily Record, 17 April 2004

According to the paper, Prince William and royal gamekeeper Robbie Elliot were firing shotguns outside the home of Jeshiera Art at Crathie, near Balmoral.  Jeshiera has not seen her cat Dream since the confrontation: she last saw him caught in a spotlight as shots were fired.  Buckingham Palace confirmed that the Prince had been on a shooting trip but denied that any cat had been shot. 

Romford Recorder, 16 April 2004

For the second time in six months a Hornchurch family have been left traumatized after a cat has been shot with an air rifle.  In the latest incident a nine-year-old Persian cat, Cassie, was shot in the spine, leaving her crippled.  The family are not optimistic about her chances of surviving the shooting.

Huddersfield Daily Examiner, 23 March 2004

Two cats belonging to a Honley woman have both been shot with a high velocity air rifle.  A .22 pellet was removed from one of the animals, but the other cat had a pellet lodged so close to her spine it was too dangerous to try to remove it.

BBC, 9 March 2004 *

Fifteen ducks and a young swan have been found shot dead on a stretch of canal near Newport, South Wales.  The mother of the dead swan had been hit twice in the head in an earlier shooting.

BBC, 5 March 2004 *

A gunman killed a female swan in the grounds of a hospital in Runcorn, Cheshire.  It had been shot in the head with a weapon that appeared to be of higher grade than an average air rifle or pistol.

Ripley Today, 4 March 2004

Anglers at Pennytown Ponds Nature Reserve, Somercotes, found two moorhens and a coot shot through the head with an air rifle.  The secretary of the local angling club, a local councillor and a police spokesman all condemned the act which had "upset a lot of local people".

Peterborough Now, 26 January 2004

Two cats from the same household were victims of separate attacks in December and January in Dogsthorpe, Peterborough.  One required emergency surgery after a pellet became lodged in her spine.  The other was recovering from a stomach wound.

Evening Chronicle (Newcastle), 20 January 2004

Pepi, a black and white tom cat, was shot in his right eye with an airgun pellet in South Gosford.  In March the paper reported that the cat had to be put to sleep.  His pensioner owner has been left devastated.  She had paid a £350 vet's bill in the hope that Pepi would recover.

Selby Today, 19 January 2004

A stray collie was found roaming Selby with a bullet lodged in his let.  No one has claimed ownership of the dog.

BBC, 13 January 2004

Schoolchildren at St George's Middle School at Dersingham, close to the Sandringham estate in Norfolk, were distressed at the sight of pheasants being killed by an estate shooting party in a neighbouring field.  More than 200 children are understood to have seen the birds being killed during morning break.