2007
We prepare
a monthly summary of gun incidents, focussing on those that raise key
issues about the nature of gun crime and the adequacy of gun legislation. Items that
have been amended or added to the list since the
Summary was written are marked (*).
Some
Personal Accounts
sent to GCN are recorded separately.
ENGLAND
Telegraph,
31 December 2007
A 20-year-old who fled after
being shot in an incident in Southwark, south London, was found
dead in a communal garden the next day.
BBC,
31 December 2007
A man is recovering in
hospital after an apparent targeted shooting in Toxteth,
Liverpool. He had a gunshot wound to the shoulder. A car
with suspected bullet holes in it was found abandoned. Police say
that the victim is not cooperating with inquiries.
BBC,
31 December 2007
Police found a shotgun and a
military-style rifle when they executed a warrant at a property in
Huyton, Merseyside. A teenage girl, a man and a woman were
arrested and then released on bail pending further inquiries.
BBC,
31 December 2007 *
A man has been arrested by
police investigating the shooting of a woman police officer during a robbery at
a pub in Bamber Bridge, Preston. The officer received 12
pellets in her leg and was treated in hospital. Two men charged
with attempted murder have appeared in court (Lancashire Evening Post,
18 January 2008). Two men are on trial and have denied attempted
murder. One of them and two other men have denied robbery.
The same defendant has also pleaded not guilty to possessing a sawn-off
shotgun and a pistol (BBC, 3 March 2009). Three men have
been convicted of robbery and a fourth has admitted the offence.
Two of them have been found guilty of wounding with intent (see
April 2009 Incidents).
Observer,
30 December 2007
It has been reported that a
gun (a Browning 9mm pistol) stolen from a British military base or
smuggled from Afghanistan or Iraq was used in the attempted murder of a
policewoman in Nottingham in February 2006 (see
Incidents).
The National Ballistics Intelligence Programme has identified a number
of 'serious crimes' involving military weapons that have fallen into the
hands of criminals. Military police have launched Operation
Plunder to prevent soldiers smuggling weapons and ammunition from
Afghanistan and Iraq into Britain.
BBC,
30 December 2007 *
A man who reportedly
threatened a member of the public with an "Uzi-style" sub-machine gun
was shot dead by armed police officers in Stansted, near
Sevenoaks in Kent. Police challenged the man and fired two shots.
The incident will be investigated by the Independent Police Complaints
Commission. The incident is being reported to have been "suicide by cop"
(Telegraph, 31 December 2007). It later emerged that the
gun carried by Dayniel Tucker was a replica
(This is Kent, 18 September 2008). A ballistics
specialist told an inquest that when he first saw the firearm he
believed in was real. The inquest also heard that Tucker had
attempted suicide in the past and was likely to have been under the
influence of drugs at the time of his death. The jury found that
he was lawfully killed (BBC, 1 March 2010).
BBC,
30 December 2007
Four men have been charged
in connection with a robbery at a supermarket in Westhoughton,
near Bolton. A traffic officer was threatened with a handgun in
Atherton following a high-speed pursuit of a car.
Worcester News,
27 December 2007
Diners at a hotel in
Tenbury Wells were shocked when they were showered with glass in a
drive-by shooting with a paintball gun.
Wigan Today,
27 December 2007
A pizza delivery man was
robbed at gunpoint in Hindley Green. He was ordered to hand
over his takings by a man wielding what was described as a black
automatic pistol.
Wiltshire Times &
Chippenham News,
27 December 2007
Two teenagers have been
arrested on suspicion of shooting at a police station and an officer's
car with a paintball gun in
Chippenham. One car window and an office window were hit.
A paintball gun and pellets were recovered.
Stratford-upon-Avon Herald,
27 December 2007
John Homes was sentenced to
six months in prison suspended for 18 months for firing an airgun at a
group of youngsters playing football in a park in Stratford near
his garden fence. The 78-year-old escaped being jailed because of
his poor health. He had admitted possessing an
imitation firearm, a
ball-bearing-firing Walther CP38, with intent to cause fear of violence.
South Manchester Reporter,
27 December 2007
A man armed with a handgun
stole cash during a supermarket robbery in West Didsbury.
He approached the till and pushed the cashier out of the way, grabbing a
quantity of cash.
Bromsgrove Standard,
27 December 2007
A convenience store in
Bromsgrove was raided by two robbers, a man and a woman, who escaped
with around £300. It is thought that they were armed with an
imitation gun.
BBC,
27 December 2007 *
A man who died in
Hartcliffe, Bristol, was shot, police have confirmed.
Originally they believed the victim was stabbed. Three men have
gone on trial charged with murder. A fourth has been charged but
has been declared unfit to stand trial. The victim was ambushed as
he walked home from a pub and shot with a gun hidden in bushes for
community use the court has heard (BBC, 22 September 2008).
Times,
26 December 2007
A 17-year-old was fighting
for his life after being shot in the face in Wandsworth, south
London. He was sitting in a parked car at the time of the
shooting. The boy's condition has improved and he has now left
hospital (Wimbledon Guardian, 27 December 2007).
Daily Mirror,
26 December 2007
The family of a woman who
died when her car crashed off the A127 at Dunton, near Basildon
in Essex, have blamed an airgun
attack for the crash. Another driver said his window was smashed
by an airgun pellet as he went under the bridge where the woman lost
control of her car. Police confirmed that people have reported
cars being hit with stones, pellets and branches. Her family have
now accepted police claims that yobs did not play a part in her death (Echo,
25 July 2008).
Express & Star,
24 December 2007
Armed robbers threatened
staff with a handgun and baseball bat before getting away with the
takings during a raid at a betting shop in Bloxwich, Walsall.
The men escaped with a 'substantial' amount of money.
ChiswickW4.com,
24 December 2007 *
A man has been charged with
possession of firearms, a prohibited weapon and ammunition after police
discovered a huge cache of lethal weapons including pump action and
semi-automatic shotguns, an Uzi machine pistol, several convertible
handguns and over twenty rifles and handguns. Police went to the
address in Chiswick, west London, after being called for
assistance by Hounslow Mental Health team.
GCN is indebted to a
correspondent for alerting us to this item
BBC,
24 December 2007
A man brandishing a gun
escaped with a quantity of cash from a bookmakers in St Helens,
Merseyside.
BBC,
24 December 2007
A man has been charged with
attempted murder after a gun was fired at a police officer in Ardwick,
Manchester. A revolver and a bulletproof vest were later found
nearby. The man has also been charged with possession of a firearm
with intent to endanger life.
BBC,
23 December 2007 *
A man who was shot in the
chest outside of a pub in Newtown, Birmingham, has died.
Several shots were fired after a disturbance in the pub which spilled
out onto the street. One year later no one had been arrested for
the shooting (Birmingham Mail, 24 December 2008).
BBC,
23 December 2007 *
A police officer was shot
during a surveillance operation in New Cross Road, south east
London. He was in an unmarked police car, following a suspect as
part of an investigation into crime in nightclubs. Two men, aged
20 and 19 have been arrested, one at the scene of the shooting.
One teenager has been jailed for a minimum of eight years after
admitting possessing a firearm and causing grievous bodily harm with
intent (see September 2008
Incidents).
Wigan Today,
21 December 2007
Two women were threatened at
gunpoint during a raid at their off-licence in Wigan. The
robbers stole an undisclosed quantity of cash.
The Citizen
(Gloucestershire),
21 December 2007
Two men, David Gale and
James Smith, who terrified passers-by when violence flared between them
at a Gloucester pub in April 2007 have been fined £1000 each and
given 200 hours' unpaid community work. They were also sentenced
to a community order with supervision for 18 months. Gale had gone
to his home and fetched an air rifle
during the dispute.
BBC,
21 December 2007 *
A man was arrested after an
attempt to rob a building society in Exeter. A cashier was
threatened with a handgun before the man ran off empty handed.
BBC,
21 December 2007
A replica of the American
forces M16 assault rifle was among items stolen from a house in
Madeley, Telford. The gun was described as a rare
air rifle.
Evening Telegraph
(Derby),
20 December 2007
An
air rifle was among items stolen from house in the Ripley,
Derbyshire, during a spate of robberies.
BBC,
20 December 2007 *
A man has been charged with
attempted murder and assisting an offender in connection with a shooting
in Stock near Chelmsford, Essex, in July 2007. The victim
was treated in hospital for wounds to the torso and arm.
Wimbledon Guardian,
19 December 2007
A teenage boy had two guns
held to his head by a gang of teenage robbers who burst into his home in
Thornton Heath, south London, in order to steal his puppy.
His family are being assisted in their search for the puppy by
doglost.co.uk.
Evening Chronicle
(Newcastle),
19 December 2007
Paul Bourn, who was obsessed
with the wife of his victim, and his brother Max Bourn face life
sentences after being convicted of the attempted murder of a man who was
shot four times at close range at his home in Lemington,
Newcastle, in September 2006 (see
Incidents). Both men were found
guilty of conspiracy to cause grievous bodily harm and conspiracy to
commit murder. Max Bourn shot the victim with a .22 weapon whilst
his brother was in the house with the victim and his wife. Another
man who denied conspiracy to murder was cleared.
BBC,
19 December 2007 *
A man was taken to hospital
after a gunman shot him in the back outside his home in Consett,
County Durham. The shooting apparently followed an altercation.
Five people charged in connection with the
shotgun attack walked free after a judge ruled that the
conduct of police officers had "seriously undermined the rule of law" (Northern
Echo, 4 October 2010).
Lancashire Evening Post,
18 December 2007
Two teenage cousins have
been granted conditional bail after facing charges of affray during an
incident in Ribbleton, Preston. One of them is accused of
threatening a man with an imitation firearm,
the other with possession of a handgun.
BBC,
18 December 2007 *
Three men were in hospital
with serious injuries after being shot in a pub in Congleton,
Cheshire. The men had spent the evening together and it is
believed that one of the men shot the others before turning the gun on
himself. The landlord of the pub has been jailed for ten years
after being convicted of two counts of wounding with intent (see
December 2008 Incidents).
Weston & Somerset Mercury,
17 December 2007
An
air rifle belonging to a former tenant was found at a
property in Weston-super-Mare by police responding after two
young girls were reported to have been burned with cigarettes and
neglected for more than seven months. The house was filled with
drugs, faeces and rubbish.
Evening Telegraph
(Northampton),
17 December 2007
A gunman fired shot at a
house in a residential street in Rushden. A window was
damaged, although no-one was injured or threatened.
Evening Chronicle
(Newcastle),
17 December 2007
The paper has reported that
Andrew Ewels, 20, has admitted firing an air
rifle in New Hartley near Blyth, Northumberland, in August 2006.
A pellet hit a 12-year-old in the head as he got off a bus. The
pellet narrowly missed blinding him and lodged just centimetres from his
eye. Ewels was fined £70. The boy's mother had called for
air rifles to be banned.
BBC,
17 December 2007
A man has been arrested
after reports of cars and other property being shot at from a house
window in Kells in Whitehaven, Cumbria. Police seized an
air rifle.
BBC,
16 December 2007
A man was injured in the
buttocks when he was approached and shot by two men on a motorbike in
Grange Town, Teesside. A local man has been arrested on
suspicion of attempted murder.
News & Star,
15 December 2007
Police who raided more than
10 homes and arrested a number of people in Carlisle and north
Cumbria recovered a firearm and ammunition.
Manchester Evening News,
15 December 2007
A man was tied up and
threatened with a handgun by a gang of masked men who broke into his
home in Woodhouse Park, Manchester. The gang demanded cash
and car keys before tying his wrists and ankles together.
Evening Gazette
(Middlesbrough),
15 December 2007
Jackie Reed was given a
six-month jail term for a firearm and public order offence but was
released as he had already served five and a half months on remand.
Reed held a .22 air pistol in one
hand and a steam iron in the other and said he would kill two victims in
a verbal confrontation in June 2007 in Hartlepool. Reed
admitted possession of a firearm when prohibited.
BBC,
15 December 2007
A man was seriously injured
in a suspected gun attack in Smethwick, West Midlands. He
was in a stable condition in hospital. It is believed he was
injured after answering the door to a caller or callers who shot him.
Oxford Mail,
14 December 2007
A police officer had a gun
pointed at him when a car was stopped in Didcot, Oxfordshire,
after it was seen to be driven erratically. The gunman
disappeared. Pupils were locked into two local schools during the
subsequent search for the man but he was not found. Metropolitan
Police detectives have now been called into the hunt for the gunman (BBC,
16 December 2007).
The Herald (Plymouth),
14 December 2007
Graham Smith was given a
12-month suspended jail sentence after a pump-action shotgun prohibited
in Britain was found in a military cabinet at his home in St Judes.
Police had been called to the house in June 2007 after reports of damage
caused to vehicles and of someone shooting pigeons with an airgun.
When police searched his home they found the shotgun with a shortened
barrel, an air rifle, an
air pistol and 32 cartridges of
ammunition. Smith, who had no firearm certificate, was a "hunting
enthusiast" who had brought the shotgun in Portugal and was merely
keeping it in Plymouth. His intention was to take the weapons back
to Portugal. He pleaded guilty to one count of possession of a
prohibited gun, two counts of possession of a firearm without a
certificate, and one of possession of ammunition without a certificate.
Smith was also ordered to complete 100 hours of unpaid work in the
community.
BBC,
14 December 2007
PC Richard Grey who was shot
by Peter Medlicott in Shrewsbury in May 2007 (see
Incidents) was
unlawfully killed an inquest has ruled. Medlicott, who had a gun
licence, committed suicide. West Mercia Police have been
criticised for not revoking Medlicott's gun licence earlier and the
coroner has recommended that police charge their licensing practices.
Medlicott had three previous convictions, two offences for disorderly
behaviour and one for drink-driving and he was also arrested for assault
in April 2007 yet he was allowed to keep guns.
BBC,
14 December 2007
Thirty two
BB guns and three crossbows were seized
by police and trading standards officials from a car boot sale in
Rufforth, York. The guns were described as extremely
convincing replicas.
Bexley Times,
13 December 2007
A 17-year-old girl, who
cannot be named, and two men have been jailed after a fellow employee of
the girl's was robbed at gunpoint in Belvedere, south London, in
June 2007. Jonathan Hayward and Francis Little were tipped off by
the girl and stole £3,500. Police found an
imitation gun at a flat associated with
the two men. All three pleaded guilty: Hayward and Little were
sentenced to four and a half years and three and a half years
respectively. The girl was jailed for 12 months. Hayward,
who had previously been jailed and released on licence, after being
caught in possession of a firearm was ordered to serve the remaining
eight years of his licence concurrently.
BBC,
13 December 2007
Shots were fired at a house
in Longsight, Manchester. Two shots hit the front door and
two hit the front window.
BBC,
12 December 2007
A teenager is in a stable
condition after being shot in Shepherds Bush, west London.
Another male received minor gunshot wounds. A man has been
arrested in connection with the shooting.
BBC,
11 December 2007
A man was arrested by armed
police in Leasowe, Wirral, after they were confronted by the man
with a firearm. He was arrested on suspicion of making threats to
kill and possession of an imitation firearm
with intent to cause fear of violence.
BBC,
11 December 2007
Hina Uroog, Kashif Ahmed and
Liaqat Khan have been jailed for four years and nine months, nine years
and six-and-a-half years. respectively, for their part in a fake kidnap
plot in which Uroog attempted to extort £300,000 from her boyfriend.
The plot was uncovered by police who set up a sting operation in
Longsight, Manchester. Ahmed ran off when he saw the officers
and threw a loaded Russian-made 9mm gun into a garden. Khan was
crouching behind a van and a sawn-off shotgun was found hidden under
vehicle. Uroog was jailed for
This is Lancashire,
10 December 2007
A masked gang stole cash
from a motorist in Whitefield. The man was approached by
three men, two of whom appeared to be carrying handguns. One of
the gang opened the passenger door and demanded cash which the victim
gave them.
Daily Mirror,
10 December 2007
A disabled woman was
arrested after a burglary at her bungalow in Epping because she
kept a stun gun under her bed. A stun gun is a prohibited weapon.
Essex Police say it was considered appropriate to deal with the offence
by way of a police caution.
Bedford Today,
10 December 2007
A Taser gun, £3000 cash and
a large quantity of cannabis have been recovered by police during a raid
in Houghton Regis. A man was arrested.
BBC,
10 December 2007
Masked burglars broke into a
house in Hesketh Bank, Lancashire, and assaulted three people in
the kitchen with a hammer and a gun. One of the occupants was hit
on the head with the gun. The offenders made off without any money
or property.
Observer,
9 December 2007
According to an article in
The Observer inquiries into the whereabouts of 3000 weapons
supplied by convicted father and son William Greenwood and Mitchell
Greenwood (the two were jailed in January 2004, see
Incidents) have revealed that the
weapons have fallen into the hands of paedophile rings, drug cartels and
extortion rackets. The deactivated guns
were sold by the men along with instructions and kits so they could be
modified to convert them to live firearms. A cache of 100 such
weapons was recently traced to a home in rural Devon, and guns
supplied by the Greenwoods have been recovered from at least 8 murder
scenes, gangland shootings and a loyalist paramilitary arms cache.
Guns from the two men have been traced to at least 65 crime scenes.
The article highlighted the ongoing problems with deactivated firearms
which are reactivated to become live weapons.
Lancashire Evening Post,
8 December 2007
A man described how he
thought he had been shot when the car in which he was travelling in
Avenham, Preston, came under fire in June 2007 (see
Incidents).
A bullet hole was later discovered in the boot of the car and cartridges
recovered from the street. Two men are charged with violent
disorder, having a firearm or imitation firearm to commit that offence
and possessing a firearm or imitation firearm
to cause fear of violence. The trial continues.
Kent News,
7 December 2007
An MP5 semi-automatic
machine gun was seized in a raid by armed police on a house in
Ramsgate. A large quantity of cannabis and other drugs were
also seized. Three men were arrested.
Daily Echo,
7 December 2007
In separate incidents
airgun pellets were fired at two
elderly women as they walked along a street in West Moors,
Dorset. A 74-year-old was shot in her bottom and an 88-year-old
was shot in her left leg and needed hospital treatment.
BBC,
7 December 2007
A shot was fired during a
ram raid by a gang on a bank in Cradley Heath, West Midlands.
Three robbers drove a car into the front of the bank. No-one was
hurt.
Harlow Herald,
6 December 2007
A fourteen-year-old
schoolboy shot another teenager in the leg with an
airgun he bought on the internet.
A court heard that the 16-year-old victim has been left "very depressed"
after the attack which took place in a street in Harlow, Essex,
in January 2007. The accused admitted charges of unlawful wounding
and possessing a firearm and was placed under supervision of a probation
officer for 18 moths, a condition being that he attends offending
behaviour work sessions.
Daily Mail,
6 December 2007
A postmaster and his wife
who were robbed by robbers who threatened them with a handgun and a
knife and then stole £11,000 from their shop in Lowestoft,
Suffolk, in September 2007, were instructed by Post Office management to
pay back the lost cash because the amount of cash stored in the till
exceeded guidelines, but the Post Office has now announced that the
claim had been withdrawn.
BBC,
6 December 2007
Ahmed Osman Hersi from
Southall, west London, has been jailed for five years after pleading
guilty to several charges of firearms and drugs possession. A
police operation targeting a gang run by Hersi recovered drugs, £300,000
cash along with two machine pistols, five semi-automatic handguns and
one Brocock revolver.
Telegraph & Argus
(Bradford),
5 December 2007 *
A man has been detained for possessing an imitation firearm with intent to cause fear
of violence in July 2007. The court was told how a teaching
assistant heard a "ping" on the window of the school minibus she was
driving in Bradford. Boys on the bus confirmed it had been
shot with a BB gun. The
accused man was carrying the black plastic handgun with him as he walked
to his mother's and admitted shooting the minibus, claiming that the
people in it would have realised it was not a real gun. Gary
Marshman has been remanded in custody and is expected to be transferred
to a hospital to be assessed by a psychiatrist. He has since been
given a two year jail sentence (Telegraph & Argus, 23 January
2008).
Evening Gazette
(Middlesbrough),
5 December 2007
A former policeman has
cleared his named after his convictions for assaulting two youths were
quashed. He said that the youths had fired an
air rifle at him in Lingdale,
Cleveland, in August 2006. He acted to prevent youths shooting the
gun at him and his land, to protect himself and his animals and to
prevent crime, the judge ruled.
BBC,
5 December 2007
A gang of up to 25 masked
men, carrying guns and dressed all in black, was seen patrolling the
streets in Moss Side and Whalley Range in Manchester by a
number of witnesses, according to police.
Evening Telegraph
(Northampton),
4 December 2007
Of 19 firearms recovered by
police in the north of Northamptonshire between April and October
five were imitation or replica guns,
five were ball-bearing guns, five
were air weapons, one was a
toy gun and another a builder's sealant
gun.
Evening Telegraph
(Northampton),
4 December 2007
A man has been
pistol-whipped by an armed robber who threatened him with a gun in a
street in Rushden. The robber stole the victim's jacket and
£20.
BBC,
4 December 2007
A gang of four threatened a
man walking home in Wisbech, Cambridgeshire. A gun was held
to the man's head as they went through his pockets to find his wallet.
BBC,
4 December 2007
Three men armed with a
shotgun and a knife fled with cash after holding up a bank in Little
Lever near Bolton. Nobody was injured in the raid.
BBC,
4 December 2007
Police seized 31
BB guns at a shop in Oldham,
Greater Manchester, as part of a crackdown on BB and replica guns which
look like genuine weapons. They hope the seizure will remind
traders of legislation which makes it an offence to manufacture, import
or sell realistic imitation guns.
Liverpool Daily Post,
3 December 2007
A 16-year-old boy was shot
in both legs in Kirkdale. He was taken to hospital with
gunshot wounds but police do not believe that his injuries are
life-threatening.
Liverpool Daily Post,
3 December 2007
Gunshots were fired at a
pizza shop in Dovecot. Damage was caused to the front
window of the premises but there were no injuries.
Bromsgrove Standard,
3 December 2007
A cashier at a service
station in Hopwood was threatened with a knife and a handgun
during an armed robbery. The robber told the attendant to empty
the taking from the till. He also took an undisclosed amount of
cigarettes.
BBC,
3 December 2007
A shotgun and ammunition
have been recovered by police from a garden in Lydgate, Oldham.
The find followed reports of a disturbance. Four men have been
arrested on suspicion of possession of a firearm.
Lancashire Evening Post,
1 December 2007
Police investigated 28
"firearms" incidents in Lancashire schools between April 2006 and
March 2007. Police and school chiefs say they do not relate to
"serious offences" but unions have expressed concerns at the figures.
The incidents appear to have involved ball
bearing guns and toy guns.
This is Wiltshire,
30 November 2007
A woman claims she was shot
with a BB gun as she walked through
Chippenham. She said she felt a sharp, stabbing pain in her
leg and realised she had a bright round spot. The shot may have
been fired from a passing vehicle.
Press Association,
30 November 2007
Thomas Callery has been
jailed for a minimum term of 16 years after being found guilty of
attempted murder. Callery flew into a rage and shot a landlord's
father with a handgun as he tried to throw him out of a pub in
Walthamstow, north east London, in April 2006 (see
May 2006 Incidents).
The victim was lucky to survive and left with a bullet lodged in his
liver. Callery's partner was jailed for 3 years for assault,
affray and assisting an offender.
Evening Telegraph (Northampton),
30 November 2007
An
air weapon is believed to have been fired at a car as it
travelled along a street in Irchester. A car was coming in
the opposite direction and as the vehicles passed each other, the victim
heard something strike the driver's door of his vehicle. The
police officer who investigated the incident believed the damage was
caused by an airgun pellet or similar.
The Journal (Newcastle),
29 November 2007
A woman was threatened at
gunpoint by a robber as she left a bank in Birtley, County
Durham. He produced what police believe to be a handgun after
demanded her handbag. The victim managed to run back inside the
bank and the man fled empty-handed.
Home Office,
29 November 2007
A
total of 118 people have been arrested and over 1300 real and imitation
firearms have been seized in Manchester, London,
Liverpool and Birmingham as part of a co-ordinated day of
action which formed a key part of the Tackling Gangs Action Programme.
The firearms recovered included 10 handguns, 6
imitation handguns, 1290 realistic
imitation firearms, 3 cs gas canisters, 1 stun gun and 4
air weapons. See BBC, 28
November 2007 below.
Diss Mercury,
28 November 2007
Vandals in Harleston,
Norfolk, have been responsible for a spate of broken windows which it is
believed have been smashed with BB pellet guns.
In the latest incident a sweet shop lost £150 worth of stock because
glass went all over the children's sweets and there was £200-worth of
damage to the door.
BBC,
28 November 2007
Thirty three people were
arrested and ten firearms seized by police after raids across
Liverpool. The arrests are for a variety of offences including
possession of firearms and drugs offences. Later reports indicated
that 57 had been arrested and 10 firearms seized. Six
imitation firearms were seized during
visits to registered dealers (Liverpool Echo, 29 November 2007). Greater Manchester
Police arrested 23 people and seized a gun, a stun gun, ammunition,
machetes and drugs (Press Association, 28 November 2007).
See Home Office, 29 November 2007 above.
BBC,
28 November 2007
A 14-year-old boy has been
arrested for allegedly carrying an imitation
gun at his school in Crawley, Sussex. He was
detained and later released on police bail. It is believed the boy
was spotted on the school's CCTV putting the gun into his locker after
showing it to his friends.
Lancashire Evening Post,
27 November 2007
Firearms officers swooped on
two addresses in Ribbleton and arrested three people, a man and
two women, on suspicion of firearms offences. Police in Preston
have adopted a zero tolerance approach to weapon-carrying. One of
the women was later released without charge (Lancashire Evening Post,
28 November 2007).
Evening Telegraph (Peterborough),
27 November 2007 *
A motorcyclist armed with
gun robbed a woman of cash in a street in Beaumont Leys,
Leicester. The victim was unhurt but left extremely distressed.
Three people, including the victim, have received police bravery awards
(see August 2008 Incidents).
BBC,
27 November 2007 *
A woman was shot in the neck
with an airgun as she was walking
back to her car in Bury, Greater Manchester. She had to
have an operation to remove the pellet. Police are investigating
three other similar incidents in the same area, one in September and the
other two in November. Three people, two 19-year-olds and a
21-year-old, have been arrested on suspicion of wounding and were
released on bail (IntheNews, 30 November 2007). A man
pleaded guilty to unlawful wounding (see
May 2008 Incidents).
Evening Telegraph (Peterborough),
26 November 2007
A motorist was shot at with
a ball-bearing gun while driving
along a road in Peterborough. He heard a loud bang and
discovered a dent in the back passenger door which looked like it had
been caused by a ball-bearing.
Liverpool Echo,
26 November 2007
A converted handgun, a
silencer and ammunition have been found by police searching wasteground
in Huyton.
Evening Telegraph (Northampton),
24 November 2007
Builders took cover after a
pellet was fired from an air rifle,
hitting a man in the back, on a building site in Corby. The
weapon had been pointed from the second floor of a house opposite the
site.
This is Lancashire,
23 November 2007 *
Police have released CCTV
pictures of a shopkeeper in Westhoughton being held at gunpoint
by a robber. The victim who ran an off licence was taken to
hospital suffering from an angina attack following the hold up in which
the man pulled a black handgun from his pocket. The robber fled
empty handed. A man has been jailed for four years after pleading
guilty to attempted robbery and possession of an
imitation firearm (see
January 2008 Incidents).
The Gazette (Blackpool),
23 November 2007
A massive arsenal of
BB guns and
replica firearms has been taken off the shelves of a shop in
Blackpool. More than 120 guns were confiscated by police
and trading standards officers. The operation came after the shop
sold a gun to a 17-year-old. A man was arrested for selling
realistic imitation firearms.
Sunderland Echo,
22 November 2007
Police fired a Taser gun at
a suspect after they received reports of a man allegedly carrying a
firearm in the street in Horden, County Durham. The suspect
was alleged to be knocking on doors and threatening to harm himself.
A Webley air rifle was recovered,
and a man was arrested on suspicion of affray.
Pendle Today,
22 November 2007
A member of staff at a shop
in Barrowford, Lancashire, was threatened by a man brandishing a
handgun. The man was trying to break into a neighbouring shop by
forcing open a security shutter door. No property was taken.
Liverpool Echo,
22 November 2007
A gunman has opened fire
three times in as many weeks in a street in Dovecot, Merseyside.
In the latest attack windows at the front of a house were damaged but
no-one inside was hurt. It is believed to be the second time this
house has been singled out.
Argus,
22 November 2007
Andrew Stevens shot himself
in the head outside his ex-girlfriend's home in Lewes, Sussex, in May 2007 (see
Incidents).
The coroner has called for reforms to gun licensing laws after Stevens,
who was depressed, was able to buy a rifle and kill himself. His
gun licence application was handled by Avon and Somerset Constabulary
and a series of concerns have been raised about the procedure.
Stevens had joined a rifle and pistol club. On the day he killed
himself Stevens had first pointed his rifle at a police officer before
turning it on himself and firing the fatal shot to his head.
This is London,
21 November 2007 *
James Cordingley has been
jailed for seven years after pleading guilty to attempted robbery,
possession of a prohibited weapon and assault occasioning actual bodily
harm. He attempted to rob a woman in Horsforth, West
Yorkshire, in September 2007 whilst armed with a Taser stun gun.
He had drunk eight cans of strong lager and taken drugs, heroin and
crack cocaine during the day before the attack which he carried out to
get cash to pay a £60 drug debt.
ic Surrey,
21 November 2007
A taxi driver was threatened
at gunpoint by two men. They lured him to a secluded spot in
Pease Pottage and demanded money whilst threatening him with a
handgun. He managed to drive off and escape unhurt.
Daily Echo,
21 November 2007
An armed robber threatened a
woman worker and stole cash from a petrol station in Weymouth.
The man was carrying a handgun. The victim was left unhurt but
very shaken.
BBC,
21 November 2007
Police investigating the
murder of Rhys Jones in August 2007 (see
Incidents) have arrested a 16-year-old
and an 18-year-old over the discovery in September of a haul of guns and
ammunition in Croxteth, Merseyside. The teenagers have been
released on bail.
Wimbledon Guardian,
20 November 2007
A man delivering a curry was
robbed at gunpoint in Balham, south London. As he returned
to his bike three men demanded money and when he told them he did not
have any one man pulled out a handgun and pointed it at his face.
He handed over around £35.
Pendle Today,
20 November 2007
A schoolboy was hit in the
forehead by an object fired from an air rifle
or pellet gun in a street in
Nelson. It was also reported that a few weeks earlier a young
girl had been hit in the leg.
BBC,
20 November 2007
A woman was threatened by what
was thought to be a firearm during a robbery at her home in Coalville,
Leicestershire. The robber escaped with an undisclosed amount of
money.
Manchester Evening News,
19 November 2007
One hundred
BB guns intended for the Christmas market
have been confiscated by trading standards officers. The guns,
including handguns and machine rifles, were found when two warehouses in
Salford were raided. The guns fire lead or steel shot capable of
piercing skin.
Info4Security,
19 November 2007
Andrew Roberts and his son Mark
Roberts have been sentenced to 18 years and 15 years respectively after a
robbery in Finchley Road, north London, in October 2006 (see
Incidents) in which a
guard was threatened with a handgun outside a bank. Mark Roberts fired
shots in the street as he attempted to get away.
BBC,
19 November 2007
A man was hit in the side and
seriously injured outside a shop in Allerton, Merseyside, in a
targeted drive-by shooting.
BBC,
19 November 2007
A man who lied about his
identity and how he was hurt in a shooting incident in Harrow, north
west London, in June 2006 has been jailed for three months after pleading
guilty to one count of perverting the course of justice. Sanjeev
Bhanot was nearly paralysed by the bullet wound admitted he "feared for his
family's safety" if he co-operated.
Wimbledon Guardian,
18 November 2007
A 16-year-old was shot by three
gunmen in Mitcham, south London. The teenager was found
suffering from a gunshot wound to the leg. He was taken to hospital
but his injury is not thought to be life-threatening.
BBC,
18 November 2007 *
Six people have been arrested
after police were called to a bar in Streatham, south London,
following reports of two men with firearms. The men had left the scene
and the arrested were made later. The nightclub has now been shut
after a decision made at a special meeting of Lambeth council's licensing
committee (ic South London, 11 December 2007).
BBC,
18 November 2007 *
A man has died in a shooting in
Chilham in Kent. Police were called after reports of a
shooting. The man died at the scene. A man was arrested in
connection with the incident and has been bailed until January (Kent News,
21 November 2007). A man is on trial accused of murder but he claims
that the fatal shot was fired from a shotgun as he tried to defend himself
and his home. The victim, who knew the defendant, was attempting to
break into his home at the time (BBC, 4 March 2009). The
defendant has been acquitted of murder (see
March 2009 Incidents).
Express & Echo,
17 November 2007 *
Armed police used a Taser stun
gun to subdue a man who brandished a gun and a samurai sword in the centre
of Exmouth. He pointed a handgun, later found to be a
BB gun, at a doorman. A man has
pleaded guilty to possessing a ball bearing gun causing a man to believe
that unlawful violence would be used against him (see
July 2008 Incidents).
BBC,
17 November 2007
Three masked men threatened
staff at a shop in Dedham, Essex. The men were armed with
weapons including a sawn-off shotgun.
West Yorkshire Police,
16 November 2007
A man has been arrested
following an operation in the Sheepridge area of Huddersfield.
A sawn off shotgun and an electric stun gun were recovered along with a
substantial amount of suspected cannabis.
Somerset County Gazette,
16 November 2007
Derek Hyslop has admitted
stealing thousands of pounds in a series of armed attacks on banks and
building societies across the country. He admitted six charges of
possessing an imitation firearm (a BB gun)
with intent to commit robbery and three counts of possession of an imitation
firearm with intent to cause fear of violence. He was remanded in
custody pending a pre-sentence report.
Hendon Times,
16 November 2007
Five men are on trial, one
charged with murder, all five with conspiracy to rob following the death of
a man in Cricklewood, north London, who was shot in the chest with
his own high-powered air rifle in his
home in January 2007 (see
Incidents). See
January 2008 Incidents.
Northampton Chronicle & Echo,
15 November 2007
A Lithuanian couple have had
extra security put on their Northampton house after gangs of youths
pelted it with eggs and ketchup, attacked their fence with an iron bar and
shouted at them. They said they had always had trouble with people
shooting at their window with ball-bearing guns
and throwing stones.
BBC,
15 November 2007 *
A 17-year-old has been shot dead
on a street in Stoke Newington, north London. Police were
called after report of gunfire. The victim was pronounced dead at the
scene. Two other teenagers have denied murdering the victim and face
trial in September 2008 (BBC, 10 March 2008). One of the men
has been convicted of murder (see
February 2009 Incidents), but has been
cleared on appeal (BBC, 15 September 2010).
Manchester Evening News,
14 November 2007
One man has been behind a
spate of robberies carried out in south Manchester, Stretford and
Stockport in the space of three weeks. On each occasion he has
walked into businesses and pointed a gun at cashiers and demanded money.
He has struck at a bookmakers and a post office in Wythenshaw, a
post office in Northenden, bookmakers in Old Trafford,
Gatley and Baguley and a travel agents in Cheadle.
Police have released CCTV images of the gunman and a substantial reward
is being offered for information that leads to his conviction.
Liverpool Daily Post,
14 November 2007 *
A man was shot dead in a
gangland-style killing in the heart of a housing estate in Speke,
Liverpool. Police were called to the scene by a member of the
public and found the body of a man with a fatal wound. He was
pronounced dead at the scene. A man has been arrested in
connection with the murder (BBC, 19 June 2008).
Herts 24,
14 November 2007
A 13-year-old girl was shot
with an airgun as she walked home
from school in Welwyn Garden City. She was struck in the
waist by one of the shots and other pellets smashed into a nearby house
and car.
Northern Echo,
13 November 2007
Marc Thorpe, who terrorised
a pregnant woman and then adopted a firing stance in the road with a
gas-fired air pistol, had hoped to be
shot by armed police. He went into the street in Harrogate,
North Yorkshire, dressed only in boxer shorts and a woollen hat after a
row with his girlfriend. Thorpe was given an 18-month community
order with probation supervision and measures to deal with his drink and
mental health issues. The gun will be destroyed.
Kent News,
13 November 2007
A man from Whitstable
was arrested after he pointed an airgun
and threatened staff at a kebab shop. He has been released pending
a decision from the CPS to prosecute.
Herald Express,
13 November 2007
A motorcyclist's crash helmet
visor was shattered in what is thought to have been an
air rifle attack as he was riding home in
Loddiswell, near Kingsbridge in Devon.
BBC,
13 November 2007
A high-powered
air rifle was stolen in a burglary at a
garage in Winterbourne Gunner near Salisbury. A faulty crossbow
was also taken.
North-West Evening Mail,
12 November 2007
A 16-year-old boy sparked a
huge police operation after he allegedly threatened a friend with an
imitation gun in Walney,
Cumbria. He was charged with possession of an
imitation gun with intent to cause fear of violence.
Evening Gazette
(Middlesbrough),
12 November 2007
A 20-year-old pregnant woman
was shot in the stomach as she was walking in Darlington.
She saw a group of teenage boys, aged 17-20, before hearing a loud crack
and feeling the searing pain of an airgun
pellet strike. Hospital staff found bruising, but her coat had
prevented more serious injury to herself and her baby. The same
evening a woman walking in the town was shot twice by an
air rifle.
On 31 October a man was shot in the back in the Parkside area of the
town: he found a part of a pellet in the wound.
This is Local London,
11 November 2007 *
Moses Oyebanjo has been
jailed for 10 years for possession of a firearm with intent to endanger
life after a gun fight in Wandsworth, south London, in April 2007
when he was shot in the buttock. Police were alerted by hospital
staff after he went for treatment. Wayne Ebanks was found guilty
of the same charge. Oyebanjo had fired at Ebanks and another man.
Both have been jailed for 10 years.
BBC,
11 November 2007
Police used a stun gun and
riot-control gas to subdue football supporters at a pub in South
Shields, Tyneside.
BBC,
11 November 2007
A gun shop worker was
kidnapped by two men in Bolton and forced to open the premises
and hand over weapons and ammunition. Several guns were taken.
Shropshire Star,
10 November 2007 *
An eight-year-old boy is
fighting for his life after being shot in the head with an
airgun. The boy from
Cheswardine near Market Drayton, was today described as being in a
"serious but stable" condition. The shooting incident is being
described as a "tragic accident". It has since been
reported that the boy was given a seven percent chance of survival but
he is now recovering at home (Shropshire Star, 4 April 2008).
Lancashire Evening Post,
10 November 2007
Police sealed off parts of
Preston in a mass operation to tackle the number of
potentially-deadly shootouts between weapon-wielding gangs.
BBC,
10 November 2007
Police used a stun gun to
incapacitate a man suspected of having a firearm in Sunderland.
The man was arrested, though no weapon was found.
This is London,
9 November 2007
A man has complained about
police behaviour after three men pressed a gun to his head and robbed
him of items including his watch, money, mobile phone and his car
following an incident in Harrow when he offered a lift to men
involved in a car crash. His car was later found burnt out.
The Metropolitan Police officers apparently treated the victim as if he
himself was a criminal. One of the gang has pleaded guilty to
robbery and theft and has been jailed for four years.
Hartlepool Mail,
9 November 2007
Bus passengers in
Hartlepool were showered with glass after someone fired at the
vehicle with a pellet gun.
Blackpool Gazette,
9 November 2007
A service station in
Newton was held up at gunpoint. Two masked men stormed into
the garage and threatened the assistant before making off with a small
sum of cash from the till.
BBC,
8 November 2007
Lynton Fletcher has been
jailed for life for murdering a man who had witnessed an armed robbery
in which Fletcher participated. The victim was shot in the
chest through both lungs in central Birmingham in February 2004 (see
Incidents).
Fletcher was caught after a retired policeman was shot and badly injured
during another armed robbery in Great Barr, Birmingham, in August
2005 (see Incidents).
The man had tried to wrestle a gun from a robber. His evidence led
eventually to Fletcher. Fletcher must serve at least 27 years in
jail (BBC, 12 December 2007).
BBC,
8 November 2007
A woman has been arrested
after an attempted armed robbery in Williton near Taunton in
Somerset. Another woman was walking when she was approached by the
woman, who appeared to be holding a gun, demanding money. No money
was handed over. An imitation firearm
has been seized.
Rugby Advertiser,
7 November 2007
A pensioner who wrote an
open letter to burglars who had broken into her Rugby home may
have had her window shot at. It looked likely that the shot was
from an air rifle or a
ball-bearing gun.
Northern Echo,
7 November 2007
A youth was spotted in a
street in Peterlee, County Durham, with what was described as an
AK47 assault rifle. The weapon was later recovered from the
teenager and found to be a ball-bearing gun.
A police spokesman said "It is impossible to distinguish a replica
weapon from the real thing at a distance... People need to be aware that
if they carry an imitation firearm in a public place a tragedy could be
round the corner". The 18-year-old was given suitable advice
regarding his conduct in front of his parents.
Liverpool Echo,
7 November 2007
A 14-year-old boy was shot
in the face by a gunman whilst riding his bike in Huyton.
He was hit by two pellets and received minor facial injuries. The
weapon may have been discarded by the gunman who fled the scene in a
car. A few days earlier a man had been shot in the leg in a pub on
the same estate.
Citizen (Blackburn),
7 November 2007
A 17-year-old salesman was
shot in the back of the head as he called door to door on an estate in
Blackpool. He was left with a chipped skull after he was
hit by an air rifle pellet, thought
to have been fired from a first floor window.
West Yorkshire Police,
6 November 2007
Police are appealing for
information following reports of a man brandishing what appeared to be a
firearm in Manningham. There were no reports of any shot
having been fired.
West Yorkshire Police,
6 November 2007
A man has been arrested on
suspicion of possessing a firearm with intent to endanger life after a
firearm was discharged through the letterbox of a house in the Rothwell
area of Leeds. No-one was injured in the incident.
Milton Keynes Citizen,
6 November 2007
Three teenagers, all armed with
handguns, attempted to rob a cash and carry in Milton Keynes.
The gang ran off empty-handed when one of them shouted that someone was
approaching.
Huddersfield Daily Examiner,
6 November 2007
A nine-year-old girl has been
left traumatised after she was robbed at gunpoint whilst cycling in
Dalton. Her purse, containing less than 10p was taken by a
teenager, aged 15 or 16, armed with a ball-bearing
gun which he loaded in front of her.
BBC,
6 November 2007
Two men were arrested when
police seized a sawn-off shotgun and ammunition from a house in Gateshead,
Tyneside. One of the men was charged with possession of a firearm when
prohibited for life and aggravated possession of a firearm.
Bexhill-on-Sea Observer,
5 November 2007 *
An elderly woman was threatened
with a handgun during an attempted armed robbery in Robertsbridge,
East Sussex. She refused to hand over her handbag to a young man who
had pulled up alongside her in a car. The gunman drove off.
BBC,
5 November 2007
A nine-year-old girl has been
injured after she was shot in the head with an
airgun pellet in an incident in Shard End, Birmingham.
Hospital staff were not able to remove the pellet, and she is expected to
receive specialist care in a plastic surgery unit.
This is Wiltshire,
4 November 2007
Deshan Chetty broke
into the former home of a friend in the centre of
Swindon
in August 2007 and was confronted by the friend's estranged wife. As he
fled he stole a ball-bearing gun
belonging to her son. He was ordered to do 80 hours of community
service and was put on probation for six months.
Sun,
2 November 2007
Nicholas Violett showed off a
handgun in a pub in Urmston, Greater Manchester. He admitted
possessing an air weapon in a public
place and has been jailed for five months.
Liverpool Daily Post,
1 November 2007 *
A man has died after being
repeatedly shot at his home near Liverpool city centre. He
suffered a number of wounds to the stomach. Three men have been
arrested on suspicion of murder. One man has pleaded guilty of
manslaughter and has been given an indefinite jail sentence (see
November 2008 Incidents).
Petersfield Post,
31 October 2007
An elderly man was hospitalized
after he fell in fright at three airgun
pellets being shot at his window in Petersfield, Hampshire.
Liverpool Echo,
31 October 2007 *
A pub in Toxteth was
sprayed with bullets in a night attack. The outside of the building
was damaged and a bullet shattered a window.
Advertiser,
31 October 2007 *
A teenager was recovering in
hospital after being shot in the street in Handsworth, Birmingham.
The 18-year-old was talking to a friend when a car pulled up alongside them
and a shot was fired. The victim was in a stable condition in
hospital.
News Shopper,
30 October 2007
Michael Gbenbitse and a
17-year-old boy kidnapped and pistol-whipped a man in a revenge attack in
Plumstead (south east London) in October 2006. The victim only
escaped being shot when the gun jammed. Both were found guilty of
kidnapping and were also convicted of possession of a firearm.
Gbenbitse was given an indeterminate sentence, sentencing of the 17-year-old
was adjourned.
Herald Express,
30 October 2007 *
A Torquay man was on
trial facing 18 charges, eleven of which relate to possessing prohibited
weapons, four to possessing weapons without a firearms certificate and one
to possessing a shotgun without a licence. An arsenal of weapons was
found by police in his home. He pleaded not guilty to all the
changes and also denies purchasing or acquiring 50 rounds of .410 ammunition
without a certificate. The prosecutor has alleged that the man has "an
unhealthy obsession with guns" and is "all too interested in their use and
firing". Jeremy Couchman, a Wild West fan, was acquitted of 10 charges
of possessing prohibited firearms (seven revolvers, two pistols and a
double-barrelled Derringer handgun) but found guilty of possessing a
prohibited Smith & Wesson revolver and attempting to purchase ammunition.
He was sentenced to a one-year suspended sentence and ordered to carry out
100 hours unpaid community work. The judge considered that in buying
the weapons on a US website he had been pursuing "a perfectly legitimate
hobby" (BBC, 21 December 2007).
BBC,
30 October 2007
A man was arrested after two men
threatened another at gunpoint at Newton Abbot station in Devon.
An air weapon was found at the man's
home address.
BBC,
30 October 2007
A 19-year-old from Portland,
Dorset, fears she could lose her sight after an air
rifle pellet was left embedded in her head. The pellet
lodged and fragmented in the back of her eye. She was shot during an
evening out with friends. A 20-year-old man was arrested and released
on bail in connection with the shooting. A man has been given a
suspended prison sentence (see
April 2008 Incidents).
This is Wiltshire,
29 October 2007
Two teenagers shot at a woman
with an airgun during an open day at the
fire station in Ringwood, Hampshire. The woman was treated at
the scene for a grazed leg. Two boys aged between 12 and 14 years old
were seen riding away from the scene on bikes.
In the News,
29 October 2007 *
Police who were called to an
address in Newton Heath, Manchester, found a man injured with gunshot
wounds. He was taken to hospital where he was in a serious but non
life-threatening condition. One man has been charged with attempted
murder and possession of a prohibited weapon and another man has been
arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to commit murder.
Express & Echo,
29 October 2007
Chingis Azis fired a
ball-bearing gun in the air during a row in
a street in Exmouth, Devon, in October 2007. He pleaded guilty
to possessing an imitation firearm with intent to cause his victim fear of
violence. Sentencing was adjourned.
Bolton News,
28 October 2007
An 18-year-old was arrested
under the Firearms Act at the scene of a car crash in Bradshaw after
a ball bearing gun was spotted on the
back seat of the vehicle. Neither he nor his passenger was injured in
the crash.
Liverpool Echo,
27 October 2007 *
A man from a tower block in the
Wirral has been evicted from his flat after an
air rifle was fired from his balcony and he rode a mini motorbike
into the block.
BBC,
27 October 2007
A 14-year-old is in hospital,
where his condition is described as stable, after he was found with a
gunshot wound in his shoulder in a street in Leyton, east London.
Operation Trident is investigating the incident.
BBC,
27 October 2007
Police are hunting a man who
robbed a leisure park at Camber Sands, Sussex. He threatened
two members of staff with a handgun before making off with an undisclosed
quantity of cash from a safe.
Evening Telegraph
(Northampton), 25 October 2007 *
A gunman opened fire on a house
during an early morning raid in Raunds, near Wellingborough.
Neighbours say between three and five shots were fired through the door of
the property. Armed police arrested a local man who was later charged
in connection with the incident. He is on trial accused of attempted
murder, attempted GBH with intent and having a firearm with intent (see
May 2008 Incidents).
News Shopper,
24 October 2007
A 20-year-old has been remanded
in custody after appearing in court charged with drugs and firearms
offences. He was arrested in Thamesmead and charged with two
counts of possessing ammunition for a firearm without a certificate, two
counts of possessing a firearm without a certificate, possession with intent
to supply cannabis, possessing cocaine with intent to supply and possession
of CS gas.
Daily Mail,
24 October 2007 *
Daniel Galvin has been found
guilty of criminal damage and common assault following a boundary dispute
with neighbours near Pershore in Worcestershire. In December 2006 he had
fired an air rifle at them whilst they
were harvesting sugar beet and one pellet hit a tractor. He was given
a five month suspended jail term and ordered to carry out 150 hours of
community work. He was also fined and ordered to pay towards the
damage to the tractor. He appealed against the conviction and has now
been cleared of the attack (Worcester News, 17 April 2008).
ic South London,
23 October 2007
Two men and a woman who
surrounded a lone woman and couples and threatened them with a
replica gun (a silver pistol) have been
jailed. Terence Glasgow was jailed for 11 years, Clare Griffin for 11
years and Lawrence Mabinton for 9 years. The trio struck three times
in Elm Park and Brixton Hill in November 2006.
Daily Mail,
23 October 2007
David Collinson was given a
seven year jail sentence after he was convicted of robbery. He had
attempted to rob a petrol station in Cheltenham in February 2007 but
was thwarted by a cashier who refused to put her till money in a bag.
Collinson, who was carrying an airgun,
was convicted of robbery.
BBC,
22 October 2007
Damage was done to the exterior
of a house in Huyton-with-Roby, Merseyside, when shots were fired.
A woman was grazed on the side by a bullet and was treated in hospital
before being allowed to go home (Liverpool Echo, 23 October 2007).
BBC,
22 October 2007 *
A man has been killed and
another seriously injured in a shooting in Streatham High Road, south
London. Two or more vehicles were seen leaving the area after the
shooting. Seven men are on trial facing charges of murder and
attempted murder. All of them deny the charges and two of them deny
the additional charge of possession of a firearm to endanger (Local
Guardian, 4 February 2009). Three men have been found not guilty
of murder (BBC, 20 March 2009) but two others have been found guilty
of murder and attempted murder (see
June 2009 Incidents).
BBC,
21 October 2007
A 13-year-old boy is recovering
in hospital after being shot in the shoulder in Moss Side,
Manchester. He is not thought to have suffered life-threatening
injuries.
Evening Telegraph
(Peterborough),
20 October 2007
A man was arrested on suspicion
of possessing an imitation firearm after
police stopped a vehicle in the Stamford area because they believed
it was acting suspiciously. One imitation gun was found in the glove
compartment and another two in the boot. The suspect has been released
on police bail.
Evening Telegraph
(Derby),
20 October 2007
Private Michael Verney used an
airgun to fire pot shots at passers-by
from his bedroom window in Long Eaton in November 2006. He
pleaded guilty to one charge of assault and one of possessing a firearm with
intent to cause fear of violence. A woman was hit and left with
bruising and a small wound. Verney also fired at a group of teenagers.
He told police that he was "practising for his new job". He was
sentenced to 26 weeks in prison, suspended for 12 months, but was told by
the judge that he would usually face a custodial sentence. The judge
said he did not want to see him lose his job and waste a career in the Army.
As an Editorial points out "If a company accountant or street cleaner had
started firing an airgun at innocent bystanders, hitting one in the process,
they would almost certainly have been jailed. The loss of their job
would inevitably have followed. A serviceman, with his special skills,
should be expected to show absolute discipline in the community."
This is Hertfordshire,
19 October 2007
Armed police swooped on the flat
of a replica pistol collector in
Battersea, south London, and seized 17 guns that were exact replicas and
could be converted to fire. The guns will be destroyed. Local
residents had raised concerns that the man had a large number of firearms
and ammunition on display in his home. According to the police, the
action was taken to reduce the threat of firearm incidents and to prevent
any possible tragic consequences should the guns have made their way into
the wrong hands.
Sunderland Echo,
18 October 2007
A shot was fired through the
window of a gym in Grangetown, Sunderland. Police sealed off
part of a busy road at the scene. The shot appeared to have been fired
from a car travelling along the road. A bullet hole was visible in the
window.
Ham & High,
18 October 2007
Smokers who had stepped outside
from a party in Kilburn, north London, were shot at by
air rifle snipers. Three people were
hit. One woman was hit in the shoulder, her boyfriend was hit in the
head and the pellet punctured the skin and a third victim was shot in the
back.
East Anglian Daily Times,
18 October 2007
An armed robber struck at a
jewellery store in Colchester and threatened staff with a handgun.
He escaped the scene on a moped with thousands of pounds worth of jewellery.
The employees were left shaken.
BBC,
18 October 2007 *
A 16-year-old boy was shot dead
in a play area in the Burngreave area of Sheffield. The boy was a local resident.
Detectives are looking at whether there are links to another shooting in the
city centre in the last 24 hours (Press Association, 18 October
2007). An 19-year-old has been on trial charged with murder but will
face a retrial after the jury was dismissed after failing to reach a verdict
(BBC, 30 April 2008).
Yorkshire Post,
17 October 2007 *
Daniel Sellers, 19, and Luke
Anderson, 18, have been found guilty of murdering a man they battered with a
cricket bat and shot with an air rifle.
They attacked their victim on a deserted country lane in Cottingham,
near Hull, in December 2006 (see
Incidents). Both face life jail sentences.
Telegraph,
15 October 2007
Reydell Waite was arrested
during a police surveillance operation in Greater Manchester during
which detectives watched him buy a 9mm semi-automatic handgun with silencer
for £2,500. He admitted possessing a prohibited firearm and was jailed
for six years.
Bexhill-on-Sea Observer,
15 October 2007 *
Armed police response teams were
scrambled to a shooting incident in Hastings, Sussex, when a couple
were struck by pellets when they were walking on a footpath. The
shotgun pellets were being fired at an organised duck shoot on marsh land.
Around 15 shooters were questioned but no arrests were made.
BBC,
15 October 2007 *
A series of 19 gun attacks,
which included a man being shot in the head along with damage caused to cars
and property in Suffolk, may be linked. The victim was hit, but not
hurt, by a pellet fired from a car in Ipswich. At least 17 cars
in Ipswich, Orford and Felixstowe and one house in
Orford were shot at with a high-powered airgun
or ball-bearing gun on the same day.
Three people, two of them teenagers have admitted a number of offences (see
May 2008 Incidents).
BBC,
15 October 2007
Another teenager has been killed
in a shooting in south London. Two gunmen opened fire into a car in
Plumstead hitting two 18-year-olds. One victim died and the other
teenager suffered injuries which are not thought to be life-threatening.
Rugby Advertiser,
12 October 2007
Three men broke into a flat in
Binley Woods and pointed what was believed to be a handgun at the
occupants. They stole £50 and a mobile phone. About the same
time burglars broke into another house in the neighbourhood and stole a car
from the driveway.
Newbury Today,
12 October 2007
Police were called to an alleged
firearms incident in Frilsham, Berkshire. Nobody was injured.
A man has been arrested on suspicion of possession of a firearm with intent
to cause fear or provocation.
ic Berkshire,
12 October 2007
Anthony Gudgeon pointed an
imitation rifle at road diggers in
Slough. Objects had already been hurled at the men but they were
really alarmed when they saw a rifle being levelled at them from a bedroom
window. Gudgeon admitted having an imitation firearm but claimed he
had not intended to scare the men. He said he had "accidentally"
pointed the gun in their direction. He pleaded guilty to threatening,
insulting and abusive behaviour towards one of the workmen and was ordered
to do community service for 12 months, undertaking 150 hours of unpaid work.
Oxford Mail,
11 October 2007
A man was robbed at gunpoint as
he walked along an alley with his girlfriend in Kidlington. Two
men threatened the man with a knife before the alleged handgun was produced.
The victim handed over his mobile phone and wallet.
ic South London,
11 October 2007
Nathan Smith has been jailed for
five years after going to his ex-girlfriend's home in Canning Town
with a loaded pistol in July 2007. The gun was found under a car seat
after armed police officers carried out what is known as a 'hard stop'.
There were four cartridges inside the chamber of the gun. Smith
admitted possession of a firearm and possession of ammunition without a
firearms certificate.
Exmouth Journal,
11 October 2007
A volley of
BB gun shots was allegedly directed at
youngsters in a recreational ground in Brixington in September.
The BB pellets caused "visible injury" to the victims. BB guns were
seized from two youths. The guns were described by police as very
realistic.
Evening Chronicle
(Newcastle),
11 October 2007
A 13-year-old boy has been
arrested for assault after a teenage sniper fired a
BB gun at three primary school children in
the playground of their school in Heaton. The boy is a former
pupil and will be assessed by the youth offending team at a youth surgery.
This is Lancashire,
10 October 2007 *
Three incidents involving guns
have been reported. In one a female community support officer feared
for her life after a ball-bearing gun
was pointed at her head by a youth in Tonge Moor. Two youths,
Christian Frodsham (13) and Nathaniel Greenhalgh (14) were convicted of
possession of an imitation firearm and sentenced to a two-year supervision
order and given a three-month curfew (Bolton News, 22 February 2008). In another incident in Tonge Moor in September a
woman was arrested after an air rifle
was pointed at children. The woman was disarmed by armed police
officers. Armed officers were called to an incident in Great Lever,
also in September, after a man was seen with a handgun tucked into the
waistband of his trousers. He was disarmed and the weapon turned out
to be a toy gun belonging to his son.
Liverpool Echo,
10 October 2007
A grandfather was shot with a
ball-bearing gun and threatened with a
knife as he left his 70th birthday party in West Derby. The
victim was hit in the leg in an unprovoked attack by a gang.
Telegraph,
9 October 2007
A police officer asked an
eight-year-old boy to destroy his plastic toy gun
after he was told it was an imitation firearm. The boy was
threatened with arrest until his step-father snapped the gun in half.
The incident took place outside the boy's home in Pinehurst in
Swindon.
Sun,
9 October 2007
Two gangs of youths fought a gun
battle on the streets of Moss Side, Manchester. Police officers
found ten bullet casing on the ground, gunshot damage to a car and one
bullet lodged in a fence, after the exchange of fire between the rival
groups.
Weston & Somerset Mercury,
8 October 2007
William Kay was drunk when he
opened fire at a neighbour's window in Weston-super-Mare. He
had fetched his 22-calibre air rifle
from his home and shot at the property. He pleaded guilty to charges
of possessing an air weapon and criminal damage and has been warned he could
face a prison sentence.
Burnley Citizen,
8 October 2007
Ex-convict Mohammed Quadri from
Burnley has been given a conditional discharge after being found with
an air pistol. He had admitted
having a firearm when prohibited and being in breach of licence after his
release from custody.
Manchester Evening News,
7 October 2007
Police are investigating an
incident in which three windows at a property in Newton Heath were
smashed by gunshots.
BBC,
7 October 2007
Two masked men, one armed with a
gun and the other with a carving knife, confronted a shopkeeper at a
newsagents in Cleethorpes, Humberside. They demanded cash which
the shop assistant refused and the men fled.
Wimbledon Guardian,
5 October 2007
Leon Russell was convicted in
May of the attempted murder of a man and sentenced to a minimum seven and a
half years' jail. His victim had been shot at point blank range up to
13 times in Kennington, south London. The High Court has heard
an appeal before agreeing Russell's sentence was unduly lenient and
has increased the minimum sentence to 17 years.
Ilford Recorder,
4 October 2007
A woman whose cat was killed
with an air rifle pellet (see below) is
considering leaving Hainault, Essex. Her windows have been hit
with steel ball bearings fired from BB guns
and pot shots have been taken at passers
by and at her neighbours' cat. She also described how a man had been
shot as he cycled near Hainault station.
Herald Express,
4 October 2007
An air
rifle was found at the Paignton house of a man who was
banned from possessing such weapons for five years following his release
from a young offender's institution. Lewis Macnamara was convicted of
two counts of assaulting a police officer and illegally possessing an
imitation firearm and a razor blade.
BBC,
4 October 2007 *
A woman had her car stolen by
two would-be male buyers, both aged about 19. She was a passenger on
the test drive when the driver stopped the car, threatened her with a gun
and ordered her out of the car. The incident happened in the
Winwick area of Warrington. A man is being questioned by
detectives investigating a series of similar gunpoint highjackings. In
two other incidents a man in Bolton was threatened with a gun (the
gang stopped to pick up the car stolen in Warrington after the carjacking)
and a car was stolen in Accrington (Bolton News, 6 October
2007). A man has admitted his involvement in the carjackings (see
January 2008 Incidents).
Tottenham, Wood Green and
Edmonton Journal,
3 October 2007
Two men were shot in the thigh
and the foot by a gunman outside a social club in West Green, north
London. They were taken to hospital though their conditions were said
not to be life threatening.
Times,
3 October 2007 *
A 26-year-old woman who was
walking home from work was killed when she was hit in the head by a stray
bullet in a car park in New Cross, south London. Two men began
shooting at each other and the victim was caught in the crossfire.
Three men and a woman have been arrested, but no weapon has yet been found.
A 17-year-old arrested after the death has been accused of the attempted
murder of an unknown male and possession of a firearm with intent to commit
an indictable offence (BBC, 9 October 2007). A teenager has
been found guilty of murder (see
May 2008 Incidents).
Times,
3 October 2007 *
A 21-year-old man was found dead
with gunshot wounds in a stairwell of a building in Stockwell, south
London. Two teenagers aged 18 and 17 have been charged with murder,
the 17-year-old has also been charged with carrying a gun (BBC, 7
October 2007). One teenager has been jailed for life for murder (see
August 2008 Incidents),
the second was also found guilty and sentenced to a minimum of 19 years, the
same sentence as given to the other offender (BBC, 7 April 2009).
This is Cheshire,
3 October 2007
A 15-year-old boy on a bike was
threatened with an air rifle in a
Northwich park in July 2007. A 15-year-old girl has been sentenced
for her part in the incident in which the teenager she was with fired a
large air rifle at the boy. The victim struggled with the teenager and
the girl got involved and hit him. The victim escaped with the rifle.
Magistrates gave her a 12-month referral order for each offence.
Daily Post,
3 October 2007
An air
weapon and industrial fireworks were among a haul seized during a
day of action by Merseyside police in Croxteth and Norris Green.
BBC,
3 October 2007 *
A teenager was arrested and
questioned after an 11-year-old boy was allegedly shot with a
plastic ball bearing near Billing
Aquadrome near Northampton. The victim received a red mark on his
collar bone.
Liverpool Echo,
2 October 2007
A window of a coach was shot out
by a teenage gunman as the bus headed into the centre of Liverpool.
The perpetrator was one of a gang of about seven youths, aged around 16.
The damage was estimated at around £1000. Police suspect a
ball-bearing gun was used.
Cambridge Evening News,
2 October 2007
A gunman wearing a hallowe'en
mask attempted to rob a post office and convenience store in Saffron
Walden, Essex, but the owner refused to hand over any cash. The
offenders left empty handed. Two men have been arrested and were
helping police with their inquiries.
BBC,
2 October 2007
A man has been shot in the
shoulder in Cheetham Hill, Manchester. He was driving along a
street in the area when the attack happened. A man got out of another
car and fired at his vehicle before driving off. The injured man was
in a stable condition in hospital.
BBC,
2 October 2007 *
Kasha Peniston, 17, has admitted
the manslaughter of his 12-year-old sister at their home in Gorton,
Manchester, in April 2007 (see
Incidents). The gun was illegally owned by their mother
who had buried the .38 snub-nosed revolver in the garden. She had
already pleaded guilty to possession of the gun and possession of ammunition
(see September 2007 Incidents).
The teenager removed the gun from the garden and was playing with it in his
pocket in the living room when he shot his sister. Kasha Peniston has
been jailed for two years, Natasha Peniston for three years. A man has
appeared in court charged with possessing a firearm and ammunition (BBC, 26
August 2008).
BBC,
30 September 2007
A 16-year-old was arrested after
reports that a man had been seen with a gun in the centre of Nottingham.
Armed police were called and the youth handed over the gun, an
imitation firearm, after negotiations with
officers.
BBC,
30 September 2007
Police are investigating reports
of shots being fired at a car in Liverpool. A man was seen
leaning out of a vehicle and firing at a nearby car.
Times,
28 September 2007
A man was arrested in
Brighton for pulling out a gun after he ordered a bowl of soup in a
restaurant. The police said that a weapon had been recovered and was
being viewed by armourers to establish if it is a replica or
genuine.
BBC,
28 September 2007
Three shotguns and other items
were stolen when robbers raided a property in Kingston near Ringwood
in Hampshire.
BBC,
28 September 2007
A 15-year-old boy has been
charged with possession of a firearm after he was searched by police in
Cheetham Hill, Manchester. He has also been charged with
possession of ammunition and possession of cannabis. Three other
teenagers were arrested at the same time and were released on bail after
questioning.
Reuters,
26 September 2007
An 18-year-old has been charged
with the attempted murder of two police officers in the Kirkdale area
of Liverpool. Both officers escaped injury when the teenager shot at
them.
Herald Express,
26 September 2007
An
airgun sniper caused £600-worth of damage by taking a pot shot at
a bus in Dartmouth, Devon. The pellet shattered a middle window
on the vehicle. No passengers were on the bus at the time.
BBC,
26 September 2007
Armed police officers were sent
to a house in Norwich after reports of a man with a handgun.
After a five-hour stand-off a man was arrested.
BBC,
26 September 2007
Two boys were seen in
Caterham, Surrey, with a BB gun.
One of the boys, who is aged 11, was made to hand over the gun after being
reported by a member of the public.
BBC,
26 September 2007
Guns, ammunition and cannabis
were found at a house in Haydock, Merseyside. The 11 guns
recovered included three revolvers and seven semi- automatic pistols.
Two men have been arrested on suspicion of possession of firearms.
BBC,
26 September 2007
Two men who were sitting in a
car in Oldham have been shot. Both received neck injuries. One
of the victims is awaiting surgery while the other, aged 19, suffered minor
injuries.
BBC,
26 September 2007
Two boys have been injured in a
drive-by shooting in Fallowfield, Manchester. The first victim,
aged 15, was shot in the leg when he was standing at a junction when a car
pulled up. A 12-year-old, who had been in the garden of a house in the
same street, received a graze to his leg and is thought to have been an
innocent by-stander.
Daily Mail,
25 September 2007
A boy of 14 who shot a
schoolgirl in the face with an air rifle
has been given six hours' community work. His victim, aged 15, is
still recovering from surgery after the attack which took place in Botley,
Hampshire, in June 2007. She had a lead pellet embedded behind her
right eye which nearly blinded her. The Crown Prosecution Service told
the girl's family that no action will be taken against the boy because "he
was too young to appreciate the dangers of his firing the rifle from 6ft
away". Her father has described the decision as absurd.
BBC,
24 September 2007
A biker, possibly armed with a
handgun, made off with the collection fund at a church in Darenth,
Kent. A church official was just leaving with the £590 when a
motorcyclist approached him and ordered him to hand it over.
BBC,
24 September 2007
A man was shot in the cheek with
an air rifle as he stood at a
construction site in the Smithills area of Bolton. He was taken
to hospital where he had the pellet removed.
Lincolnshire Echo,
22 September 2007
Two men, Joseph and Matthew
Waite, both admitted discharging a firearm within 50ft of the highway, an
offence under the Highways Act 1980. They were each fined £125 and
ordered to pay £75 compensation together with costs and a fine. The
case followed an incident in which a pensioner was shot in the back with a
stray air rifle pellet from a window ledge shooting gallery in
Bracebridge Heath in June 2007. An air
rifle was found hidden under a settee at Mackie's home.
BBC,
22 September 2007 *
A man was arrested after a gun
was found in baggage on a plane at Blackpool airport. Officers
found a blank-firing firearm and some
ammunition. The incident was not related to terrorism. The
arrested man was given a suspended jail sentence (see
July 2008 Incidents).
BBC,
22 September 2007
A man was shot in the stomach
and legs during an incident outside a nightclub in Cotteridge in the
West Midlands. He was taken to hospital where his condition was
described as stable.
ic South London,
21 September 2007
A man was held at gunpoint in a
travel agent's in Walworth, south London. A group of around 10
teenagers were involved and stole the victim's wallet and mobile phone.
ic South London,
21 September 2007
Marlon Granderson is facing a
life sentence after being found guilty of eight charges: possession of a Mac
10 with intent to endanger life, three handguns, two silencers, 62 hollow
point bullets, 379 rounds of ammunition, possession of an explosive
substance, possession of a firearm to supply class-A drugs and possession of
class-A drugs with intent to supply. The guns had been found in a car
parked in Peckham in July 2006, following a tip-off (see
Incidents).
Ballistics experts linked all three handguns to six separate shootings.
Granderson, who was caught in October 2006, is believed to have been the
boss of the Peckham Boys, a notorious gang linked to hundreds of drug and
firearms offences in South London.
Express & Star,
21 September 2007
In the West Midlands a man
was shot in Whitmore Reans and an 18-year-old remained seriously
ill in hospital after being shot in the back in Wednesfield (Heathtown,
see below).
BBC,
21 September 2007
A man has been jailed for three
and a half years after he shot one girl in the leg with an
air rifle, held the gun to the head of
another person and fired pellets out of a window. The incidents
occurred in October 2005 when he threw out partygoers from his daughter's
party at Sandhurst, Berkshire. Jamie Armstrong pleaded guilty
to two counts of possession of a firearm with intent and actual bodily harm.
His then partner, Tracey Blowfield, was jailed for a year after admitting
assault occasioning ABH and perverting the course of justice.
BBC,
21 September 2007
The driver of a postal van was
tied and bound after he was forced to drive at gunpoint by three armed
robbers. The men threatened and hit him as he made a delivery in
South Heath, Buckinghamshire, and he was made to drive to a location
near Amersham where he was tied up and the robbers fled with cash.
The Post Office has offered a £25,000 reward for any information that leads
to the arrest and conviction of the three men.
AOL News,
21 September 2007
A teenage boy was undergoing an
operation to remove a bullet from his arm after an apparent drive-by
shooting in Sheffield. A man and a youth have been arrested in
connection with the shooting.
This is Wiltshire,
20 September 2007
Jonathan Clarke sparked an armed
police alert when he went shopping in Devizes. He appeared to
have what looked like a large handgun stuck in his belt. A security
officer followed him home and police responded. A
BB gun was recovered. No action was
taken against him in connection with the gun because he did not "use it in a
threatening manner" towards anyone, according to police.
Oxford Mail,
20 September 2007
Two robbers, one brandishing a
knife and the other holding a gun, robbed a corner shop in Headington,
Oxford. They raided the till and escaped with £80 in cash. Two
men have been arrested in connection with the raid and have been released on
bail.
Mansfield Chad,
20 September 2007
Kelvin Pennant from Mansfield
Woodhouse pointed an air rifle at a police officer who had arrived at
his home to arrest him on a warrant in May 2007. After officers
spotted the air rifle Pennant was
disarmed and taken to the police station. He has been jailed for 15
months.
Lancashire Evening Post,
20 September 2007
A teenager
was spotted on CCTV cameras brandishing a weapon which looked like an AK47
assault rifle at Newton Station in Hyde, Manchester. Another
boy was seen to take the gun from a bin liner, fit it with an ammunition
magazine and pass it to the teenager who aimed it an a crane driver working
nearby. The youths evaded capture. A 17-year-old has since been
charged with possession of an imitation firearm. The weapon was a
ball bearing gun. A 15-year-old has
also been arrested and is on police bail pending further inquiries (Tameside
Advertiser, 26 September 2007).
Evening Chronicle
(Newcastle),
20 September 2007
A man burst into a pub in
Gateshead brandishing what looked like a handgun and demanded money.
He was tackled by customers and detained after a chase and a struggle.
A ball-bearing gun and property taken
from the pub were recovered. A man is in custody.
Barking and Dagenham Recorder,
20 September 2007
Armed police used a stun gun to
subdue a man who was wielding a pistol at a busy pub in Chadwell Heath,
east London. A suspected personal disagreement boiled over outside the
pub.
Wiltshire Times & Chippenham
News,
19 September 2007
A gun was seized by police from
two nine-year-old children who were pointing it at passers by in
Trowbridge. The weapon was an air pistol
which according to the children was bought at a market stall.
Littlehampton Gazette,
19 September 2007
Windows of a library in
Worthing, West Sussex, were smashed after vandals shot at them with a
ball-bearing gun.
BBC,
19 September 2007
Police are appealing for help to
trace a person who shot at a flat in Ribbleton, Preston. A
couple were woken by a shot fired at their lounge window.
BBC,
19 September 2007 *
A man found with bullet wounds
in a street in Acton, west London, has died in hospital. A post
mortem examination has confirmed that the victim died from a shot to the
head (Ealing Times, 20 September 2007). Two men are in custody
and two men and a woman arrested by police previously have been bailed (BBC,
1 November 2007).
ic South London,
18 September 2007
Two 17-year-olds and a
20-year-old were arrested after a shooting in Elephant and Castle,
south London. The 20-year-old was arrested after being taken to
hospital with a gunshot wound to his foot. All three had been in a car
which crashed during a getaway. Police believe the shooting was
sparked by a fight in a nearby nightspot. In another shooting linked
to the same nightclub two nights earlier someone let off five rounds and a
man was shot in the shoulder. Police do not believe the two shootings
to be connected.
BBC,
18 September 2007
Police have said they believe
that armed raids on six homes in Norfolk have been committed by the same
group of five men. The gang, armed with guns have demanded cash from
householders in Upwell, Nordelph, Stow Bridge, North
Runton, Elm and Wereham. They gained modest sums of
cash from some of the robberies, but left empty-handed on at least three
occasions. Police believe that shots were fired on at least two
occasions. The gang may also be linked to a similar offence in
Wisbech, Cambridgeshire, an armed robbery on a hotel in Northwold
(see below) and an aggravated burglary at a home in Pott Row.
BBC,
18 September 2007
A shop worker was taken to
hospital after he was injured in an armed raid in Small Heath,
Birmingham, during which a shot was fired. The shot did not hit anyone
but the employee was injured during a struggle. A group of masked men
had entered the shop and demanded money. They escaped with a small
amount of cash.
BBC,
18 September 2007
A teenager has been shot in the
knee in what police have said was a targeted attack in the Broomhall
area of Sheffield. The man, aged 18, took himself to hospital with a
bullet wound. The injury is not thought to be life-threatening.
Wimbledon Guardian,
17 September 2007
Perry Campbell was jailed for 11
years after pleading guilty to six counts of armed robbery and six weapons
charges. He was arrested after police watched him and his accomplice
Hamid Terrachet hold up a bank in Barnes in June 2006. He had
also been involved in armed raids on bookmakers in Raynes Park and
Twickenham and off licences in Acton. Campbell was shot with a Taser
gun after he refused to cooperate with police after the raid in Barnes.
Two BB guns were found in the getaway
car. He was sentenced to eight years' jail for the armed robbery in
Barnes and three years for possession of an imitation firearm. He was
given six years for each of five further armed robberies and two years for
each of five counts of possession of an imitation firearm, to be served
concurrently. Terrachet had already been sentenced to six years for
robbery and two years for possession of an imitation firearm.
BBC,
17 September 2007
A 14-year-old boy was shot in
the leg by an airgun as he walked along
a street in Great Wyrley, Staffordshire. He was treated for
minor injuries and had a pellet removed in hospital.
Skegness Standard,
16 September 2007
Police arrested six teenagers,
three girls and three boys aged between 17 and 18, after a member of the
public reported seeing them firing handguns at each other along the A158 at
Scremby in Lincolnshire. They were caught at North Greetwell
and police recovered three BB guns and
two Samurai swords from two cars.
BBC,
15 September 2007
Police are hunting a teenager
who shot at a man following an incident at a takeaway restaurant in
Stretford, Greater Manchester. Following a "verbal altercation"
the youth had pulled out a black handgun and fired a shot towards the victim.
The man escaped injury.
The Visitor (Morecambe),
14 September 2007 *
Two men have been remanded in
police custody after they were accused of stealing cash from a takeaway
delivery driver in Morecambe. They threatened the driver with
a handgun and have pleaded not guilty to charges of robbery and possession
of an imitation firearm. Both
men have now pleaded guilty and face jail sentences (see
April 2008 Incidents).
Richmond & Twickenham Times,
14 September 2007
The trial of a gang of four who conspired
to rob and burgle the home of a family in Barnes has begun.
Police arrested the men a few days after three of them had stood up from
behind a car and held up a sawn-off shotgun, telling the officers to back
off. They face charges of conspiracy to rob, possessing an altered
firearm without a certificate, possessing a firearm with intent to cause
fear of violence. They also face a further charge of conspiracy to
burgle to which two of them have pleaded guilty.
BBC,
14 September 2007 *
A 20-year-old was arrested after
police found an imitation handgun at a house in the Lockleaze area of
Bristol. The house was raided after pictures had been posted on a
website showing youths posing with what appeared to be a handgun and
ammunition.
BBC,
14 September 2007
Two male youths, aged 17 and 18,
have been arrested by armed police after an incident in a Lincoln
street. They were seen playing with what looked like a handgun.
A BB gun was recovered.
BBC,
14 September 2007
Two men, armed with what is
believed to have been a handgun, entered an off-licence in Wallsend,
North Tyneside, and demanded the till be opened. Staff escaped to the
rear of the shop and raised the alarm. The men left empty handed.
BBC,
14 September 2007
An 18-year-old man who was shot
in the back near a pub in Heathtown, Wolverhampton, is said to be in
a critical condition in hospital.
This is Derbyshire,
13 September 2007
Recently installed CCTV cameras outside Silk
Mill Museum in Derby recorded an imitation
firearm incident in July when a gang of youths were spotted.
A police armed response team arrested two men. A 20-year-old man was
given a caution and an 18-year-old charged with possessing an imitation
firearm in public.
Sussex Express,
13 September 2007
Three men have been arrested in
connection with a robbery in which a gang of robbers forced their way into a
house in Newhaven. The occupants were tied up and the gang
stole £5,000 and a pearl necklace. The victims thought they saw a
handgun.
ic Surrey,
13 September 2007
Damage costing £800 was caused
to a shop window in Merstham by vandals who shot an
air rifle at it. There were two holes
in the window.
Daily Echo,
13 September 2007
Armed police in Dorset are
dealing with an average of 30 calls for help a month. In a recent
incident a 16-year-old girl had been shot with an
air weapon in Weymouth and had received minor injuries.
The offender was not found.
Buxton Advertiser,
13 September 2007
Stephen Andrew Twort and Luke Ryan Wroe were jailed for 14 months and two years, respectively, after two
schoolboys were robbed on a bus from Buxton to Whaley Bridge.
They were armed with an imitation handgun
and have been drinking vodka and Twort had taken methadone. They
demanded money from the victims and threatened them with violence.
Twort was convicted of affray and possessing a replica weapon, Wroe of two
counts of robbery.
BBC,
13 September 2007 *
Two men were shot and killed by
police during an alleged armed raid at a bank in Chandler's Ford,
Hampshire. The Independent Police Complaints Commission is conducting
an inquiry. A man was later arrested in the Raynes Park area of
south-west London. He has appeared in court charged with the attempted
robbery and possession of a firearm with intent to commit an indictable
offence (inthenews, 15 September 2007). Four men are on trial
charged with conspiracy to rob in relation to this and a number of other
robberies (see August 2008
Incidents).
BBC,
13 September 2007
A 15-year-old who robbed school
children with an imitation gun in
Shrewsbury was given two years probation, ordered to be electronically
tagged and undergo weekly counselling. He had stolen a mobile phone
and admitted two charges of armed robbery at an earlier court hearing.
The Press (York),
12 September 2007
A gun shop owner in York
has been placed on City of York Council's Staff Warning Register after
allegedly threatening a council worker with a rifle. He was accused of
pointing the replica rifle at an officer
when he told him to leave the premises. He admitted having a "heated
discussion" with the officer but claims he had been cleaning the rifle at
the time and denied pointing the gun ad him.
The Press (York),
12 September 2007
Ivan Rawlinson pleaded guilty
to three charges of threats to kill, harassment and possession of a
firearm and ammunition. He had phoned his wife and told her that he
was "going to blow away everyone" and that he was "on a suicide mission"
and had a shotgun and two pistols. Police traced him to a hotel in
York and an air pistol was
found in his vehicle. He was given a two-and-a-half year jail
sentence. The police armed response team's raid on the hotel in
March 2007 is estimated to have cost at least £6,000.
The Journal (Newcastle),
12 September 2007
A man was arrested for public
order offences and offences involving the use and possession of a firearm
following a raid on a caravan in Seaton Burn, North Tyneside.
An air rifle was recovered.
Kent News,
12 September 2007
An 11-year-old boy has been
shot in the torso with a ball-bearing gun
while playing with friends in Gillingham, Kent. They were
approached by three teenagers, one of whom shot the victim in the ribcage.
He suffered a small bruise and although he did not need hospital treated
has been greatly affected by the incident.
Express & Echo (Exeter),
12 September 2007
Police have issued a warning
over the dangers of air rifles after two incidents. A man had to
undergo lifesaving surgery after apparently shooting himself in the head at
a property in Exeter. He had contacted police warning them
that he planned to harm himself. An airgun
was found at the scene. The man has a pellet lodged in
his head. Police were also called to Beaford, Devon, where a
man had sustained a pellet wound to his chest whilst he had been out
shooting pheasants and had slipped down a grassy slope and accidentally
discharged his air rifle.
BBC,
12 September 2007
Four shotguns and ammunition
have been stolen in a burglary at a property in Millom, Cumbria.
BBC,
12 September 2007
A lorry carrying shotgun
cartridges caught fire on the M42 in Worcestershire.
Motorists were hit by long delays as the northbound carriageway was
closed. The fire was brought under control with advice from a
military adviser.
BBC,
12 September 2007
Three men, one armed with a
Taser stun gun, forced their way into a flat in Longwell Green,
Bristol. The resident was incapacitated and was pushed into a
room. The men left with clothes, a plasma television and two mobile
phones.
Reading Evening Post,
11 September 2007
Two men were hit by pellets
from a BB gun in west Reading.
One of the victims was shot in the right shoulder, the other took a direct
hit to the chest. It is thought that the gunman may have been aiming
from the window of a block of flats. Two young men were seen to come
out of the flats and put something in the bushes.
ic Sefton and West Lancs,
11 September 2007
Two young men were spotted
apparently waving a shotgun out of the window of their car as they drove
through Southport. Police uncovered an object, which turned
out to be a BB gun. The two men
were released without charge.
Evening Telegraph
(Northampton),
11 September 2007
John James McGhie has been
jailed for three years after he pointed an
imitation Kalashnikov AK-47 at a female police officer in
Corby and threatened to kill her. He had bought two guns after
seeing an advert in a newsagent's shop window. The incident occurred
after his wife, with whom he'd been drinking, called the police when he
had tucked a replica pistol into his
waistband.
BBC,
11 September 2007
Two women were threatened by
two burglars who stole cash, a handbag, a mobile hone and other items from
a house in Kingswood, south Gloucestershire. One of the
men was armed with a stun gun which he used to force one of the victims back
into her home.
BBC,
11 September 2007
Two 13-year-old girls were
injured by a shot fired from an airgun at a school in Stafford.
They received minor injuries. Two men have been arrested on
suspicion of possession of a firearm with intent to put someone in fear of
violence and assault. A gas-powered air
pistol was seized.
BBC,
11 September 2007
Police have questioned a
number of people in connection with the shooting of a man found with
gunshot wounds in Annesley Woodhouse, Nottinghamshire. The
injured man remains in hospital where he was said to be in a stable
condition.
Lancashire Evening Post,
10 September 2007 *
A man was found shot dead in
the back garden of a home in Fleetwood, Lancashire. A shotgun
was recovered. The death was not being treated as suspicious.
Lancashire Evening Post,
10 September 2007
Two terrified teenagers burst
into a pub in Ribbleton, Preston, claiming they had been shot at by
a marauding gang brandishing a gun. This was the latest in a
catalogue of incidents involving firearms. The shots were apparently
fired from an imitation gun (Lancashire Evening Post, 19 September
2007). The week before a
business in Fishwick was held up at gunpoint in a robbery and two
hours later a man was threatened with a BB gun.
BBC,
10 September 2007
Private Christopher Trussler
has been jailed for three years. He had stolen army ammunition and
tried to sell it to an undercover police officer from Operation Trident in
Chichester, West Sussex, in May 2007 (see
June 2007 Incidents). He admitted
illegally possessing and stealing 21 rounds of 9mm ammunition after a
Northern Ireland training exercise. The MoD have said that it would
investigate whether ammunition security procedures could be tightened (Daily
Mirror, 11 September 2007).
BBC,
9 September 2007
A man has been shot dead in a
park in Camberwell, south London. The victim was pronounced
dead at the scene. He had received a gunshot wound to the chest.
This is Wiltshire,
8 September 2007
Michael Harris, 20, fired at
least three pellets into a man with his ball
bearing gun following a row about his parents' splitting up.
The victim was his father's lodger and was shot on his doorstep in
Greenmeadow, Swindon in October 2006.
One pellet punctured the skin and left him with a 1mm deep wound.
Harris pleaded guilty to a charge of actual bodily harm and was jailed for
15 months.
This is Exeter,
8 September 2007
Graham Sykes triggered a
police siege in Newton Poppleford, Devon, in January 2007 (see
Incidents). He
brandished a rifle and was carrying a knife. He pleaded guilty to
possessing a firearm with intent to cause fear of violence. He has
been bailed to live at a hostel until he is sentenced.
News & Star,
8 September 2007
Andrew Hull and Jonathan
O'Neil, both 18, have been jailed for a year after they took a pot shot at
a pedestrian while they were driving through Carlisle city centre
in April 2007. The victim was in pain after being hit in the temple.
The gun, a BB-type airgun which
looked like a handgun, was found by police. The teenagers both
pleaded guilty to possessing the imitation gun with intent to cause fear
of violence.
BBC,
8 September 2007
Natasha Peniston, whose
daughter was shot dead in her own home in Gorton, Manchester, in
April 2007 (see Incidents),
has pleaded guilty to possession of a firearm. She had confessed to
keeping the .38 snub-nosed revolver pistol that killed her daughter and
two .38 bullets and two soft-nosed bullets. She was released on
bail. A 17-year-old boy is due to stand trial for the murder.
He has pleaded guilty to a count of possession of a handgun and ammunition
but denies murder.
Eastern Daily Press,
7 September 2007
A man was attacked with a
ball-bearing gun by a young man in a
hooded top in Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, who is believed to have
fired at the victim's head at least five times whilst the man was sitting
on a bench. The victim was treated for minor injuries in hospital.
BBC,
7 September 2007
A man has been arrested after
police found a large amount of cocaine and a firearm and ammunition at a
house in Stockton, Teesside.
BBC,
7 September 2007
Gang member Leon Edwards was
found with two pistols hidden in the cistern of the toilet at his home in
Longsight, Manchester, when police raided the property in January
2007. He admitted possession of two guns with intent to cause fear
of violence and possession of ammunition with the intent for another to
endanger life. He was given an indeterminate sentence and will serve
at least four years and 35 days.
The Argus (Brighton),
7 September 2007
A dentist has
been allowed to continue practising despite showing off a gun to the
manager of his practice in Worthing in April 2005. The
manager persuaded him to hand over the weapon and later threw it into a
rubbish bin. The gun was an air pistol
and the dentist told the manager that he shouldn't be worried about it.
The General Dental Council cleared him of misconduct.
Oxford Mail,
6 September 2007
A 16-year-old boy was being
questioned on suspicion of trying to carry out an armed robbery whilst
brandishing a BB gun or
airgun. He demanded cash from
staff at a petrol station in Didcot.
ic Croydon,
6 September 2007
A man was taken to hospital
with gunshot wounds to his chest and a leg after being shot in the back
garden of a house in Thornton Heath during a party. He was
discharged from hospital within days. Police had been called to the
house after reports of gunshots.
Harrow Times,
6 September 2007
Two men were gunned down in a
crowded nightclub in Wembley, north London. One man was
seriously injured and was still in hospital. The other victim was
also hit by bullets but has since recovered from his injuries. Four
men walked into the club and fired indiscriminately.
Evening Telegraph
(Northampton),
6 September 2007
Armed police were called to a
housing estate in Rushden after a youth was spotted with a
ball-bearing gun. He was seen on a mini motorbike pointing a
gun. The 16-year-old was later released on bail pending further
inquiries.
Shields Gazette,
5 September 2007
Four youths have been arrested
in South Tyneside over the summer following incidents involving
BB guns reported to police.
Midweek Visiter,
5 September 2007
The police were called to a
street in Southport after an anonymous caller claimed that a
teenager was displaying a weapon to his friends. It was unclear what
type of weapon was involved.
Gazette & Herald,
5 September 2007
A police firearms team swooped
on Calne, Wiltshire, after residents reported seeing a teenager
brandishing a gun and shouting 'stay away'. The gun was fired.
Three youths were handcuffed and searched for weapons. A
BB gun was confiscated.
BBC,
5 September 2007
Three linked
airgun attacks have taken place in
Burton-upon-Trent, Staffordshire. The guns were fired at people
from a passing car. A man needed hospital treatment after being hit
by at least two pellets. Later another man suffered a head wound
after being hit by at least four pellets, and in the third incident a man
reported that six shots were fired at him.
Wimbledon Guardian,
4 September 2007
A man jumped into a car in
Wandsworth and demanded money from the driver. The victim ran
off and phoned the police but on returning to his car found his mobile
phone and Sat Nav accessory had been stolen. The attacker had been
accompanied by a woman. Two similar armed robberies had occurred in
the same street in the past three months. Police believe men are
being lured to the spot under the pretence of an arranged escort meet.
Grimsby Telegraph,
4 September 2007
A correspondent to the
Grimsby newspaper has written to describe how a near neighbour allows
his 10-year-old son to shoot an air rifle
in the back garden and that numerous neighbours are finding pellets in
their own gardens.
People,
2 September 2007
A man fired an
airgun at a train from the side of the
track between Exeter and Axminster. The outer pain of
a window on the train shattered.
Lynn News,
2 September 2007
Four men armed with three
shotgun-style weapons and an axe threatened a staff member at a hotel in
Northwold, Norfolk. The victim was ordered to open the safe
before the robbers made off with a quantity of cash.
BBC,
2 September 2007
A man has been charged on two
counts of possession of a prohibited weapon after weapons including a
handgun and a rifle were found at a house in Wythenshaw,
Manchester.
BBC,
2 September 2007
Three men broke into a home in
Southampton and threatened a family with a handgun. The men
demanded money. No one was injured.
This is Gloucestershire,
1 September 2007
William Hayward, 20, was found
guilty of robbing a student at a flat in Strood, demanding money
with menaces from the victim and having an
imitation firearm with intent to cause fear. He was
jailed for six years.
BBC,
1 September 2007
A man was shot in the back in
a street in the Toxteth area of Liverpool. His injuries are
not life-threatening.
BBC,
1 September 2007
A police officer accidentally
shot himself in the leg as he was getting into a car in central London.
He had been on duty in the Grosvenor Square area. He was
stable in hospital.
Sunderland Echo,
31 August 2007
A jury has failed to reach a
verdict in the case of a man accused of shooting an
air rifle at a teenage girl as she waited
at a bus stop in Wingate, County Durham, in December 2006.
The 19-year-old defendant denied possessing a firearm with intent to cause
another person to fear violence would be used against them.
Prosecutors have been given time to decide if they want a retrial.
The air rifle was shot from a passing car but the jury heard conflicting
accounts from two of the four men in the car.
Huddersfield Daily Examiner,
31 August 2007
A woman was in the garden of
her home in Waterloo, Huddersfield, when she was shot at by two
boys, aged about 13, standing in the wood behind the house. She
pretended to phone the police and was threatened by the youths who then
fired a shot at her head. She removed an
airgun pellet that was embedded in her head and was taken to
hospital to have stitches.
Evening Star,
31 August 2007 *
A male cyclist was taken to
hospital following an incident in Lowestoft, Suffolk, when he was
shot with a BB gun. A ball
bearing penetrated his skin and became lodged close to his spine,
requiring an operation to remove it. In another incident in the town
four teenagers were arrested and an imitation firearm recovered after a
number of vehicles were damaged by youths firing
paintball gun pellets (Lowestoft Journal, 31 August
2007). A 19-year-old is due to answer bail in connection with the
attack (Lowestoft Journal, 5 October 2007).
BBC,
31 August 2007
Police were looking for two
teenage girls caught on CCTV brandishing what looked like handguns in
Manchester city centre. The guns were believed to be
replicas. Two 15-year-old girls
have been cautioned by police who were satisfied that the weapons seen
were toy guns (BBC, 2 September 2007).
Incidents from 30 August 2007 (as reported by the Daily Mirror)
Report of a man with a handgun
on the A14 near Spittals, Cambridgeshire
Report of youths with a rifle in
Widnes, Cheshire
Report of suicidal man with a
weapon in Peterborough
Gang of youths with a handgun
rob two people outside a pub in Wolverhampton
Man arrested for making threats
with a gun in Godalming, Surrey
Woman threatened with a shotgun
at Seaforth railway station, Merseyside
Man shot in the leg outside a
pub in Newton Heath, Manchester
Incidents from 29 August 2007 (as reported by the Daily Mirror)
Report of an 11-year-old with a
BB gun shooting at children in the
street in Crewe
Gun raider attempts to rob post
office in Brigstock, Northamptonshire
This is Cheshire,
29 August 2007
A teenage gunman pointed a
handgun at the head of a man in Hale Village. He threatened
to shoot the man, who was with his wife, and demanded car keys before
firing two shots in the air. The victim fought off the gunman with a
stick.
The Press (York),
29 August 2007
At least two people were hit
by pellets from an air rifle in a busy
street in York. One of the victims was working the door of a
pub, the other was a visitor who was with his family. Police found
an air weapon inside a flat and three people, an 18-year-old man, a
14-year-old girl and a 15-year-old boy were arrested and bailed.
Oldham Advertiser,
29 August 2007
A 14-year-old boy nearly
blinded a shopper in Chadderton in July 2007 with a ball bearing
fired from a replica gun. The
boy pleaded guilty to possessing a firearm and common assault. He
was given a three-month-action plan order, ordered to pay £150 in
compensation and £60 costs.
Mansfield Chad,
29 August 2007
A man has described how he was
one of several pedestrians hit by pellets fired from a
BB gun whilst he was on holiday in
Skegness, Lincolnshire. Two men in their 20s had opened fire
from a car travelling between Skegness and Ingoldmells. Two men were
arrested and issued with fixed penalty tickets for disorderly behaviour.
Two BB guns were seized from their vehicle.
Daily Echo,
29 August 2007
A sniper with an
airgun fired shots at firefighters
responding to a 999 call on Portland, Dorset. Pellets were
fired at the windscreens of a car and a fire engine.
BBC,
29 August 2007 *
Three people, one of them
believed to be a 17-year-old boy, were dead after a shooting at a house in
Bishop's Stortford, Hertfordshire. Two women were injured in
the attack and a three-year-old girl survived uninjured. Police
believe that the killing was carried out by professional hitmen who fired
up to 10 shots (This is London, 30 August 2007). Two men have
been convicted of three counts of murder and two of attempted murder (see
August 2008 Incidents).
Incidents from 28 August 2007 (as reported by the Daily Mirror)
Man reported shot in the back by
an air rifle in Mansfield,
Nottinghamshire
* Youth shot in torso and arm in
Tottenham, North London. A man has been jailed for a total of
ten years (see September 2008
Incidents).
Two youths seen carrying an
air rifle in Ferry Meadows Country Park,
Cambridgeshire
Policed seize
gas-powered BB gun from youths in
Warminster, Wiltshire
A man pulls a handgun in a shop
in Wallsend, Tyneside
Worcester News,
28 August 2007
A woman cashier was confronted
by a man carrying what may have been a plastic
replica handgun at a petrol station in Droitwich.
The man escaped with a small amount of cash. The woman was left
shaken but unhurt.
BBC,
28 August 2007
A woman was shot several times
outside a nightclub in Old Kent Road, south London. A gun was
fired into a crowd and the victim was accidentally caught up in
a feud between bouncers and four men. She was in a stable condition
in hospital. A man has been arrested and charged with attempted
murder and other offences. A second man has also been charged with
firearm offences (Croydon Guardian, 3 September 2007).
BBC,
28 August 2007
A man underwent emergency
surgery after being shot in a street in Streatham, south London.
He had suffered a gunshot wound to the thigh. He was in a stable
condition in hospital.
BBC,
28 August 2007
Two shootings occurred at the
Notting Hill Carnival in west London. A 17-year-old
was taken to hospital with a shoulder wound. An arrest was made in
connection with the incident. Later a 14-year-old was shot in the
leg. Three people were arrested in Bayswater Road on
suspicion of possession of firearms.
BBC,
28 August 2007
A masked man brandishing a
firearm threatened staff at a petrol station in Corby,
Northamptonshire. He demanded cash and fled on foot carrying a bag.
BBC,
28 August 2007
Three men were arrested and a
road in the Englishcombe area of Bath was sealed for more than an
hour after reports of shots being fired. A
blank firing pistol was recovered. The men were later
released without charge.
Incidents from 27 August 2007 (as reported by the Daily Mirror)
Man seen waving a handgun a
youths in Nuneaton, Warwickshire
Youth reportedly seen with a
handgun in Wilmslow, Cheshire
Man with suspected handgun in
Queensgate car park, Peterborough
Man charged with possession of
an imitation firearm in Nuneaton
Man seen with a weapon in
Kegworth, Leicestershire
A 16-year-old arrested for
possession of a firearm in Cliff Street, Sheffield
Two teenagers seen with
suspected handgun in Pocklington, Humberside
Life Style Extra,
27 August 2007
Four people were arrested by
armed police for possessing a firearm after a raid on an address in
Maida Vale, London. A firearm was seized.
Birmingham Mail,
27 August 2007 *
Police are hunting a burglar
who stole an airgun and 500 pellets as
well as cash from a house in Rugeley, Staffordshire.
BBC,
27 August 2007
A robber, thought to have been
carrying a firearm, threatened a female cashier at a bus company's
premises in Cowley, Oxford. After a short struggle the man
left empty handed on the back of a large motorcycle.
Scotland on Sunday,
26 August 2007 *
Three youths were convicted of
murdering a leading member of a notorious Merseyside gang who was shot
dead yards from the entrance of Altcourse prison in Liverpool in August
2006 (see Incidents).
Ryan Lloyd, 20, who ordered the killing from prison was jailed for life
with a minimum of 28 years. Thomas Forshaw, 18, was jailed for life
with a minimum term of 20 years and a 16-year-old youth was jailed for
life and must serve a minimum of 18 years. A fourth person, Liam
Duffy was jailed for 20 years for manslaughter (Liverpool Echo, 28
September 2007).
BBC,
26 August 2007
A 13-year-old boy was one of
three victims of a shooting during a house party in Tottenham,
north London. The boy was shot in the leg. An 18-year-old
woman suffered a gunshot wound to her lower back and an 18-year-old man
was shot in the chest during the incident. The injuries were not
life-threatening.
Incidents from 25 August 2007 (as reported by the Daily Mirror)
Man shot in face in
Cheetham Hill, Manchester
Shots fired though house
window in Tuebrook, Liverpool
Man reported carrying a sword
and gun in Bristol
Two arrested in Ellesmere
Port, Cheshire, after four men point a shotgun at children
In Slough, Berkshire,
one man threatens another with a replica pistol
Man pulls handgun on three
girls, demanding a handbag, in Telford, Shropshire
A 10-year-old threatens a man
with a handgun on a train in Preston
Three 18-year-olds say a
shotgun is fired at them in New Mills, Derbyshire
Man is shot with
air pellet in Killingholme,
Humberside
Woman is injured by a
pellet in Blaby, Leicestershire
Group of youths in Eye,
near Peterborough, reported with a 9mm Glock pistol
Woman seen to fire a
long-barrelled weapon at a neighbour in St Neots, Cambridgeshire
Daily Post,
25 August 2007
Two doormen were shot outside
a nightclub in the Mossley Hill area of Liverpool. One of the
victims was in a critical condition with stomach injuries, the other was
in a stable condition with leg injuries.
BBC,
25 August 2007
A 10-year-old girl suffered
minor facial injuries after being shot at with a
BB gun in Cannock, Staffordshire. Earlier in the
month police had also received reports of a passenger in a car firing
pellets from the vehicle in the town.
BBC,
25 August 2007
A 13-year-old boy is being
treated in hospital after being shot with what is believed to be a pellet
from an air weapon in Hulme,
Manchester. No arrests have been made.
Incidents from 24 August 2007 (as reported by the Daily Mirror)
Man threatens to shoot a shop
worker in Cleethorpes, Lincolnshire
Man reported with a handgun
sitting in Grafton Centre car park, Cambridge
Property tycoon suffers minor
facial injuries in a shooting in Moortown, Leeds
This is Derbyshire,
24 August 2007
A 10-year-old boy has been
shot in the leg and head whilst playing with friends in Midway,
Derbyshire. A 15-year-old boy was interviewed by police and issued
with a reprimand for assault. Two
ball-bearing guns were confiscated from him and destroyed.
Hackney Gazette,
24 August 2007
A teenager fired between three
or four shots in Broadway Market, east London, sparking fears that
a gang "turf war" was escalating. Six weeks before a teenager was
chased by men firing a gun and earlier in the year picnickers diver for
cover when a motorcyclist opened fire on a group of youths in London
Fields.
BBC,
24 August 2007 *
A man died after an apparent
shooting accident on remote farmland between Wolsingham and
Frosterley in County Durham. The alarm was raised when a man
reported that a colleague had been badly hurt after a shotgun had been
fired. The man was declared dead at the scene. An inquest jury
ruled that he was killed by accident (see
October 2008 Incidents).
BBC,
24 August 2007
The M5 motorway was closed
after shots were fired at a police car when another vehicle was stopped as
part of a routine check in Gloucestershire. No one was
injured. Police gave pursuit but lost track of the car from which
the shot were fired.
Worcester News,
23 August 2007
Craig Taylor has been given a
suspended jail sentence after police found him with an
imitation handgun in his jacket pocket. He was a
passenger in a car searched by police in Droitwich in November
2006. Taylor admitted being in possession of an offensive weapon.
News & Star,
23 August 2007
A teenage cyclist suffered a
collapsed lung after being shot by an airgun
sniper in Carlisle. The victim is now recovering at home.
He had been hit in the chest. He is still suffering medical problems
more than three weeks after being targeted.
National Newspapers,
23 August 2007 *
An 11-year-old boy, Rhys
Jones, has been
shot dead, allegedly by a hooded teenager on a BMX bike. The victim
was in a pub car park in Croxteth, Liverpool, where he was kicking
a football when the attack occurred. Three shots were fired one of
which hit the boy. Detectives investigating the murder believe they
have now found the gun used by the killer (BBC, 20 February 2008).
An 18-year-old has been convicted of murder and five fellow gang members
have been convicted of assisting an offender. A 17-year-old has been
convicted of four related charges (see
December 2008 Incidents).
Luton Today,
23 August 2007
A man was forced to hand over
the key to his luxury car at gunpoint after he had just parked the vehicle
in Luton. He was approached by two men who eventually drove
off in his car which was found later parked in the town. One of the
two men was armed with a handgun.
The Comet,
23 August 2007 *
Two men were
seriously injured in a street shooting in Letchworth Garden City,
Hertfordshire. The victims were taken to hospital where the
condition of one is described as serious and the other as stable.
Five men have been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder and a woman
was also arrested for violent disorder. One man has been jailed for
possession of a firearm and affray (see
October 2008 Incidents).
BBC,
23 August 2007
A police constable was shot
accidentally by a colleague at a firing range at Gatwick police
station, Sussex. The officer, who was wearing body armour, was not
seriously injured and was taken to hospital with bruising.
BBC,
22 August 2007
A man has been arrested on
suspicion of attempted murder after another man was shot whilst walking
between his car and a house in Bingley, West Yorkshire. The
victim was able to take himself to hospital where his condition was
stable.
BBC,
22 August 2007
A loaded
air rifle, used to kill vermin, was stolen during an attack
on an allotment in Easterside, Middlesbrough. Three racing
pigeons had their necks broken during the raid and other birds were
stolen.
BBC,
22 August 2007
A youth turned his
air rifle on an elderly man who had told him to stop firing at
ducks on a reservoir near Rotherham, South Yorkshire. The
youth fired the gun in the man's direction but he was uninjured.
Asian Image,
22 August 2007
Murtaza Hussain brandished an
airgun that looked like a semi-automatic pistol when he
attempted to rob a corner shop in Thornbury, Bradford, in May 2007.
The shopkeeper pushed the panic button and Hussain was arrested after the
being chased by the shopkeeper. He was sent to a young offenders
institution for 18 months after pleading guilty to attempted robbery and
possessing an imitation firearm.
News Shopper,
21 August 2007
A man has been given a two
year rehabilitation order for child cruelty and assaulting his wife.
Among various actions, the man from Crayford, Kent, had shot his
daughter in both knees with a ball-bearing gun,
claiming it was an accident.
Cambridge Evening News,
21 August 2007
Two teenagers were arrested in
Newport, near Saffron Walden in Essex, after a concerned woman saw
teenagers carrying a weapon. The two will appear in court later this
month. The police have issued a warning that possessing a loaded
air rifle is a public offence.
BBC,
21 August 2007 *
Colin Joyce and Lee Amos,
leading members of the Gooch gang in Manchester, have been arrested
for breaching the terms of their licence, following release from prison.
Detectives believe the pair were linked to a recent spate of shootings in
Manchester. Three other men were also arrested in connection with
gun crime incidents and firearms were recovered. Both men have been
convicted of murder and given lengthy jail sentences (see
April 2009 Incidents).
BBC,
21 August 2007
A man has been charged with
attempted armed robbery and possession of an
imitation firearm while committing a serious offence after an
incident on a street in Worsley, Greater Manchester.
BBC,
21 August 2007
A three-year-old girl was shot
in the head with an airgun at a pub in
Stoke-on-Trent in what was being described as "a tragic accident".
She was taken to hospital where her condition was described as stable.
She has a pellet lodged in her brain. Police have spoken to another
child, reported to be her six-year-old sister, who was in a bedroom with
the girl at the time of the shooting. A weapon has been recovered (BBC,
22 August 2007).
BBC,
20 August 2007
Staff at a post office in
Corby, Northamptonshire, were forced to hand over cash to a masked man
brandishing a firearm. The robber made off with an accomplice.
Police said a link to a robbery at a betting shop in Corby could not be
ruled out.
This is Gloucestershire,
18 August 2007
A man stole £400 from a
betting shop in Podsmead after threatening a young male member of
staff with a handgun.
Sunderland Echo,
17 August 2007
Children found a sawn-off
shotgun in a bag hidden in dense woodland close to Frankland Jail in
Durham. The bag also contained 20 shells and two black
balaclavas. The police were keeping an open mind about where the gun
came from.
Life Style Extra,
17 August 2007
Craig Dyer, 19, has been given
28 months youth custody after pleading guilty to possessing an illegal
firearm and ammunition. Police had discovered a
converted firearm
and 9mm bullets during a search of his flat in South Norwood, south
London, following the murder of a 16-year-old boy in Streatham in
February 2007 (see Incidents).
Kilburn Times,
17 August 2007
A third man has been jailed
for the murder of a man who was shot dead in Willesden, north west
London, in January
2005 (see Incidents).
Darren Mathurin was found guilty of conspiracy to murder. Roberto
Parchment and Romain Whyte had previously been jailed.
BBC,
17 August 2007
A man was arrested on
suspicion of possession of a firearm with intent to endanger life after
police were called to a pub in Newquay, Cornwall. Witnesses
said a man was pointing a gun through the pub window.
BBC,
17 August 2007
A man was in a stable
condition in hospital after being shot near Tulse Hill station in
south London. Police are investigating whether the man was chased by
youths before being shot.
Evening Star,
16 August 2007
Four men were due to be
questioned after being found with a firearm in a street in Ipswich.
The men have been released on bail (Evening Star, 17 August 2007).
This is Wiltshire,
15 August 2007
Police are stepping up
measures to combat a rising spate of air rifle
attacks on residents and animals in an area of Warminster. A
number of people have complained about being targeted in their own back
gardens in recent weeks.
This is Cheshire,
15 August 2007
A gunman opened fire on a
house in Widnes. A bullet tore through a sofa minutes after a
four-year-old boy had been sleeping there. The boy's father and his
two-year-old sister were also asleep in the house. The gunman was
described as being aged between 16 and 20.
ic Surrey,
15 August 2007
Jephat Sango, 19, has pleaded
guilty to robbery and possession of an imitation firearm and sentenced to
concurrent sentences of four years and four and half years detention at a
young offenders' institution. In March 2007 he had threatened a
woman with a replica ball-bearing gun
in a street in Croydon and demanded that she hand over money.
Citizen (Burnley),
15 August 2007
Michael Redmond from
Burnley, who pointed a ball-bearing gun
at a man at his ex-girlfriend's house, has been given a one year jail
sentence, suspended for two years, with 12 months supervision and the
Think First programme. He had admitted possessing an imitation
firearm with intent to cause fear of violence. Although Redmond's
defence described the weapon as a "glorified toy gun" the judge said that
the victim did not know this.
Nottingham Evening Post,
14 August 2007
Two masked men were being
hunted after terrifying a family in their home in Ilkeston.
The men were armed with a starting pistol
and a machete and during the raid the gun was fired and one family member
was hit on the back with the machete.
BBC,
14 August 2007
A man was arrested after
police officers used a stun gun to disarm him. He was armed with an
air rifle and a knife and was refusing
to leave his flat in Blandford, Dorset.
Nottingham Evening Post,
13 August 2007
Police are investigating
reports that a gun was fired at a house in Lenton. A window
was shattered following what police described as an "ongoing feud".
No one was injured.
Luton Today,
13 August 2007
A woman council worker was hit
by a missile fired from a ball bearing gun
by a gang of youths as she was working at a recreation ground in Luton.
She was shocked by the attack but not injured.
Grimsby Telegraph,
13 August 2007
Nineteen-year-old David Riley
fired a ball bearing gun while at work
in a factory in Louth. He has been given a four month prison
term, suspended for 12 months. He had pointed the gun at three
workmates and one pellet was fired which ricocheted and struck one of them
on the hand. Riley was placed under an 18-month supervision order,
told to carry out 40 hours' unpaid work and ordered to pay £100
compensation to his workmate.
BBC,
13 August 2007 *
A motorcyclist was shot dead
as he was travelling on the southbound carriageway of the M40 near
Leamington Spa, Warwickshire. Police have said that biker gangs
are a "strong line of inquiry" and they wish to trace the occupants of a
green Rover 620 seen nearby. Six men have been found guilty of
murder and four of firearms offences. A seventh man admitted murder
and firearms offences before the trial began (see
November 2008 Incidents).
BBC,
12 August 2007
Two men have been arrested
over a double shooting in Chorlton-on-Medlock, Manchester, in which
two other men received gunshot wounds. One of the victims was shot
in the torso and arm, the other in the neck. Both are recovering in
hospital. A 17-year-old boy and a man has been charged with
attempted murder (Manchester Evening News, 5 September 2007).
BBC,
12 August 2007 *
A 21-year-old woman has been
charged with firearms and drugs offences after police found a handgun and
accessories when her car was pulled over as part of routine stop-checks in
the Fulwood area of Preston. The woman and three other people
have pleaded guilty to possession of the firearm (see
February 2008 Incidents).
BBC,
12 August 2007 *
A 20-year-old man has been
shot dead on a busy street in Wavertree, Liverpool. He was
walking back to a friend's house when the shooting occurred. Three
men who are on trial have all deny murder (Liverpool Echo, 28 April
2009).
Wear Valley Mercury,
11 August 2007
Airgun slugs were found after 12 windows of the clubhouse of
Hunwick Cricket Club, County Durham, were smashed. Windows had
also been broken in May.
Southern Daily Echo,
10 August 2007
Ian Smith left a trail of
panic in his wake when he went on the rampage in Lyndhurst,
Hampshire. Whilst high on a mix of medication and alcohol he first
raided an off licence in the town where he loaded an
air pistol and pointed it at the shop
assistant. Smith grabbed a fistful of notes from the till and filled
a bin liner with cigarettes. He fired the gun, smashing something at
the back of the shop. Minutes later he entered a restaurant and then
a pub where a customer took the gun off him. After that he went to a
supermarket in Calmore and pretended to be armed and swung a bottle
at the manager. He pleaded guilty to robbery, attempted robbery and
possessing an imitation firearm for robbery and putting people in fear of
violence. He has been jailed indefinitely.
Nottingham Evening Post,
10 August 2007
An 18-year-old man in on trial
accused of pulling a sawn-off shotgun on three people in Clifton in
November 2006. He denies possession of a firearm with intent.
Birmingham Mail,
10 August 2007
Reis Kelly of Chelmsley
Wood was given a six-month community order for having a loaded
air rifle in a public place and
possession of cannabis.
BBC,
10 August 2007
A Baikal SL handgun and
ammunition were recovered by police in an alleyway in Ardwick,
Manchester. They were discovered after officers patrolling the area
noticed two men crouching in the grounds of a school who both fled when
they realised they had been spotted. An 18-year-old has been
arrested on suspicion of possession of a firearm.
BBC,
10 August 2007
A 20-year-old man has been
charged with possessing an imitation firearm
with intent to cause fear of violence. The offence is
believed to be linked to the murder of a man in Huyton, Merseyside.
ic South London,
9 August 2007 *
A teenager has been arrested
with a massive arsenal of weapons in Bermondsey. He was
caught with eight stun guns, more than 20 CS gas cannisters and a Brocock
gas-powered handgun.
Police fear he was supplying gangs.
ic Coventry,
9 August 2007
Two men arrested on suspicion
of possessing a firearm with intent to cause fear of violence were
released without charge. The arrests followed reports that someone
had a gun or had been threatened with a gun in a street in Hillfields.
No weapons were recovered.
BBC,
8 August 2007
A nine-year-old boy was taken
to hospital with a serious eye injury after an incident in Chesterfield
when he was hit in the face with a pellet fired from a
BB gun. Derbyshire Police warned
young people not to carry BB guns and encouraged traders to sign up to the
Gunsafe initiative and withdraw BB guns from sale.
BBC,
8 August 2007
A 16-year-old girl was shot in
the leg while walking along a street in Maidenhead, Berkshire.
An unknown attacker had fired an air rifle.
She was taken to hospital as a precaution.
ic Coventry,
7 August 2007
A youth has been arrested on
suspicion of possession of a firearm with intent to cause fear of violence
for allegedly threatening a woman in Bedworth town centre.
She claims the teenager made verbal threats to her and also believed she
had seen him with a handgun. An air rifle
was recovered which is not believed to be linked to the incident.
Express & Star,
7 August 2007
A boy aged 10 shot at two
schoolgirls with a ball bearing gun as
they walked close to a play area in Heath Hayes, Staffordshire. One of the
girls was hit on the arm.
Bolton News,
7 August 2007
Two men have been jailed for a
total of 19 years after a raid at Atherton railway station in
December 2006. They escaped with more than £2000 after threatening a
cashier with a fake handgun.
Paul Anthony Benson pleaded guilty to robbery, possession of a firearm and
three burglaries and received 11 years in total. Shane Francis
Scally was jailed for 8 years after pleading guilty to robbery.
Evening Star,
6 August 2007
A man has been found dead on
farmland off the road linking Bruisyard and Peasenhall in
Suffolk. A shotgun was recovered from the scene. It is
believed he died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Police are not
treating the death as suspicious.
BBC,
6 August 2007
One arrest was made after
reports of a man with a gun in Bridgwater, Somerset. Council
CCTV operators had raised the alarm. The man was released on police
bail.
Avon and Somerset
Constabulary,
4 August 2007
Police arrested a man on
suspicion of being in possession of a firearm after an incident in
Bristol. There were reports that a shot had been discharged
towards the ground resulting in one person sustaining a minor injury from
debris.
AOL News,
4 August 2007 *
A teenager, believed to be
aged 18 or 19, has become the latest victim of a fatal shooting in south
London. Police found him near Brixton underground station
after they were called to reports of shots being fired. A man on a
motorcycle had ridden up to a group of 11 or 12 youths and spoke to them
before pulling out a gun and shooting at them (BBC, 4 August 2007).
A teenager has been found guilty of murder (see
May 2008 Incidents).
Telegraph,
3 August 2007 *
Colin Gunn, described as one of the country's most feared and dangerous
criminals, has been jailed for
life following an unprecedented undercover police operation.
Gunn ran a Nottingham-based gang with his brother David. He was behind the murders of a couple at their home in
Trusthorpe, Lincolnshire, in August 2004 (see
Incidents
and
February 2010 Incidents) and was linked
to the murder of jeweller Marion Bates in Arnold, Nottingham, in
September 2003 (see Incidents). He had
been connected to at least six murders and 50 shootings. He was
serving a minimum of 35 years for masterminding the Trusthorpe murders and
has now been sentenced to another nine years for his role in police
corruption. An order banning his identification was lifted.
Sidmouth Herald,
3 August 2007
A seven-year-old boy from
Sidford, Devon, narrowly escaped serious injury after being shot just
below the eye by a BB gun.
Police are keen to track two youths following the attack. The attack
occurred a week after police warnings over BB guns following the seizure
of three weapons from Swedish students in Sidmouth.
Lancashire Evening Post,
3 August 2007
Abdul Ibrahim, 16, and a
14-year-old boy have been sentenced to five years and two years and eight
months in custody, respectively, for their part in an attack in which a
teenager was almost beaten to death in a park in Preston in
February 2007 (see Incidents).
The victim was attacked in a robbery by the pair who were armed with a
cosh-type weapon and a ball-bearing gun
which they fired at the victim's friends.
ic Berkshire,
3 August 2007
Zafram Saleem, 19, has had an
appeal against criminal conviction turned down. He was one of four
people convicted of causing grievous bodily harm with intent following an
attack in a park in Maidenhead in February 2005 which involved a
Stanley knife and an airgun.
Saleem had captured the attack on mobile phone and was sentenced to two
years in jail,
Life Style Extra,
2 August 2007 *
Christopher Toussant-Collins,
19, has been found guilty of being one of a gang of armed men who lay in
wait outside a man's home in Wembley, north London, in July 2006
(see Incidents).
The victim was shot as he was about to take his two children to school and
died of his injuries. Toussant-Collins was jailed for at least 25
years (Evening Standard, 17 September 2007).
Kent News,
2 August 2007
After a boy was shot in the
leg with an air rifle as he walked by
the River Medway in Tovil, two youngsters were arrested, one
(aged 15) for assault and possession of a firearm with intent to cause
injury. The shot was one of three fired by one of a gang of five
youths who took aim at a group on the opposite bank of the river.
This is Grimsby,
1 August 2007
A man is unable to see out of
one eye after being shot in the head with an air
rifle or pellet gun.
He was leaving a house in Cleethorpes when a shot was fired by
someone in a car. Doctors currently cannot tell how much long-term
damage has been done.
Hunts Post,
1 August 2007
A man in St Neots seen
walking along with a silver gun down his trousers, pulled the gun out,
alarming passers-by, before heading off into a nearby flat. He was
later arrested for possession of a BB gun
in a public place.
BBC,
1 August 2007
A dog has died after being
shot when three masked gunmen opened fire at a house in Salford, Greater
Manchester. The dog was behind the door at the time. He had to
be put down after he was found to be too badly injured. Nobody
inside the house was injured.
BBC,
1 August 2007
Police arrested a man on
suspicion of firearms offences and false imprisonment after a number of
people were taken hostage at a hostel in Sittingbourne, Kent.
There was a stand-off which lasted more than seven hours overnight.
The man was armed with an imitation firearm.
BBC,
31 July 2007
A man hit in the leg in
Blackley was the fifth person to be shot in a five day period in
Manchester.
Somerset County Gazette,
30 July 2007
Following two armed robberies
in Minehead and Weston-super-Mare a man has appeared before
magistrates charged with six counts of robbery, six of possession of a
firearm with intent to commit an indictable offence and two counts of
possession of an imitation firearm
with intent to cause fear of violence and threats to kill.
Manchester Evening News,
30 July 2007
A 16-year-old suffered a
grazed leg when he was shot in Moss Side, a week after a
14-year-old was hit in the arm after two gunmen on bicycles shot into a
house in the same area of Manchester. A man was shot in the hip
while walking in the street in South Manchester.
BBC,
29 July 2007
Two men were arrested after
shots were fired at a plain-clothes police patrol at a recreation ground
in Neasden, north west London. The officers were chasing a
man when he turned and fired a number of shots at them.
Hartlepool Mail,
28 July 2007
An
air rifle pellet lodged in a girl's finger when she was shot as
she played with friends in woods near Wingate. The
15-year-old was walking her dog, and the group heard the "click" of an air
rifle being discharged. She was taken to hospital and the pellet was
removed and her broken finger strapped.
BBC,
28 July 2007 *
A man has been killed and two
others, including a teenager (see below), have been injured in two shooting incidents
in Manchester. A man died in hospital after police were called to a
drive-by shooting in Chorlton-on-Medlock. Another man
admitted himself to hospital with gunshot wounds. The victims were
drinking with more than 100 other friends of a man who was killed in a
drive-by shooting in Manchester last month (see
Incidents) (Guardian, 30 July
2007). Four men have now been arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to
commit the murders of the victim in Chorlton-on-Medlock and the man whose
funeral he was attending (see
January 2008 Incidents). A total of eleven men have been
convicted in connection with the two murders (see
April 2009 Incidents).
BBC,
28 July 2007
A 14-year-old boy
was taken to hospital after another shooting near Hulme Park.
Police are not saying if the shootings are linked or not (see above).
Evening Telegraph (Peterborough),
27 July 2007
Police scrambled a helicopter
after reports of a gang of people brandishing a gun in a field in
Peterborough. Armed police found a man shooting at cans with two
teenage boys and a young boy. They had air
rifles but should not have been on the land. The group
were sent on their way with a strong warning about being more careful when
using air rifles.
Eastern Daily Press,
27 July 2007
A woman was arrested by armed
police and held overnight after complaints she had threatened a group of
children with an airgun. She was
arrested on suspicion of a firearms offence at her home in Feltwell,
Norfolk. She was released after accepting a police caution.
BBC,
27 July 2007
Shaun Brown will serve a
minimum of 12 years in jail after he left another man paralysed from the
neck down after shooting him at close range on the Stonebridge
estate, north west London, in June 2006. It was suggested that the
motive may have been revenge for the fatal shooting in Harlesden of his
cousin.
ic South London,
26 July 2007
A man armed with an
air weapon has been taking random
potshots at pedestrians in Streatham High Road and nearby streets.
Men and women were targeted over a four day period.
Bexley Times,
26 July 2007
A stash of firearms was pulled
from the River Cray in Crayford by police. There were about
20 weapons, including shotguns and rifles such as AK47s. The
decommissioned guns had been stolen from a locked van belonging to
organisers of the War and Peace show held at a farm at Paddock Wood
the previous day. The owners have been given crime prevention advice
by the police.
BBC,
26 July 2007
Marvin Wallace has been jailed
for five years after a "lethal" arsenal of weapons was found under a
toddler's bed during a raid on a flat in Elephant and Castle, south
London, in October 2005 (see
Incidents). Police found a sawn-off shotgun, four
handguns, a silencer and 97 rounds of ammunition. Wallace was found
guilty of possessing the shotgun but cleared of any connection with the
other weaponry.
BBC,
26 July 2007
A 16-year-old was shot dead
after being chased by youths on bicycles in the latest fatal shooting in
south London. Police were called to reports of shots in Stockwell
and found the teenager. He was pronounced dead at the scene. A
man has been charged with murder (Press Association, 28 July 2007).
This is Cheshire,
25 July 2007
An 18-year-old has been fined
£500 and two 17-year-olds given six month referral orders for their part
in a drive-by-style shooting with an air rifle.
The three-strong gang, two boys and a girl, shot at three cyclists in
Runcorn in April 2007. One of the cyclists was shot in the back
of the head, and the other two were hit in the knee and chest
respectively. All three offenders pleaded guilty to three counts of
assault and possession of an imitation firearm with intent.
Newbury Today,
25 July 2007
A man held up a postmistress
in Newbury at gunpoint and ordered her to hand over bundles of
cash.
Evening Chronicle (Newcastle),
25 July 2007
James Hearons has been jailed
for four years after police found a shotgun hidden inside a wardrobe in
his home in Walker. He admitted possessing the weapon while
prohibited, possessing ammunition and possession without a firearm
certificate.
Evening Chronicle (Newcastle),
25 July 2007
Kirsty Laing pleaded guilty to
possessing a self loading shotgun. The charge of possessing the
small bore 12 gauge gun carries a mandatory minimum five year jail term.
Sentencing was adjourned for probation and psychiatric reports and Laing
was remanded on bail to live with her parents in South Shields.
ic South London,
24 July 2007
Kujtim Spahiu murdered a rival
in a turf war over the right to steal from London's parking metres.
He was one of two gunmen who burst into a club in Park Royal,
north-west London, in October 2006 (see
Incidents). They sent drinkers
diving for cover as they sprayed the hall with bullets. One man died
when he was shot through the head but two other men escaped with their
lives. Spahiu was found guilty of murder and the attempted murders
of three other men. Two men were cleared of all charges. A
fourth man, said to be the lead gunman, has never been traced by police.
Spahiu will serve at least 33 years in jail.
ic South London,
24 July 2007
Shots have been fired at a bar
in Brixton. There were no reports of any gun shot injuries.
A man has been arrested on suspicion of possessing a firearm. He had
been wrestled to the ground by partygoers. Another suspect got away
and is now being hunted by police (ic South London, 26 July 2007).
ic Coventry,
24 July 2007
Two people, one a 13-year-old
boy, were shot with an air rifle in
Holbrooks. Both victims were hit in the leg and needed hospital
treatment. Two 14-year-old boys have been arrested on suspicion of
assault and released on police bail.
Grimsby Telegraph,
24 July 2007
Police found an arsenal of
weapons and drugs in a lock-up in a privately-rented garage in
Immingham. They seized a sawn-off shotgun, two high powered
air rifles, a
ball-bearing gun and a machete. A man has been arrested.
BBC,
24 July 2007 *
A man is critically ill after
he was shot at a club in Fulham Road, south west London, where he
worked as a bouncer. He was involved in an altercation after asking
customers to stop smoking and was shot in the rear garden area. The
victim has died after his life support machine was switched off (BBC,
27 July 2007). Two men have been cleared of murder and have walked
free from court. Another man has been found guilty of murder (see
October 2008 Incidents).
BBC,
24 July 2007
A man was found with a leg
injury after reports of a gunshot in Fishwick, Preston. He
was taken to hospital, although his injuries are not believed to be
life-threatening.
The Press (York),
23 July 2007
Youths carrying imitation
firearms are spreading panic in Hambleton. Police have warned
that offenders are putting their own lives in danger by wielding the
weapons. They have made two arrests and have seized three
ball-bearing guns.
BBC,
23 July 2007
A teenager escaped injury when
he was shot at during a drive-by shooting in Old Trafford,
Manchester. He was not hit by the bullet but a shop window was
damaged.
BBC,
23 July 2007
A man and a woman were shot in
an attack in Toxteth, Liverpool. A man suffered gunshot
wounds to his back and a woman was shot in the hand. Police believe
the attack was targeted.
BBC,
23 July 2007
Three people have been
arrested in Bridlington after two incidents involving an
airgun. A man was shot in the
stomach but did not need treatment for a blister caused by a pellet and
the upstairs window of a house was damaged by two pellet holes. Two
of those arrested were later released without charge and a 20-year-old man
was given police bail.
Sunday Mail,
22 July 2007
A 14-year-old was recovering
in hospital after being shot in the face with an
airgun by a gang of youths in Witley, Surrey. He
had a pellet removed from his neck.
BBC,
22 July 2007
A gun was fired in an incident
in Hazelwood, near Selby in Yorkshire. No one is thought to
have been injured by the shot. A man has been arrested and is being
questioned by police.
This is Hampshire,
21 July 2007
Armed police went to a car
park in Lyndhurst after three teenagers were spotted carrying what
appeared to be a larger rifle before getting into a car. A
ball-bearing firing air rifle was found
in the boot when the car was stopped. Three 17-year-olds were
arrested and later released having received a final warning.
This is Cheshire,
19 July 2007
An elderly woman walking home
in Orford was forced to hand over her purse by a teenager who
apparently pointed a black handgun at her. A second teenager asked
her if she wanted her belongings back and both youths returned, handed
back the purse and said it had just been a joke.
Newbury Today,
19 July 2007
A teenager allegedly held up a
shop assistant in Hungerford, Berkshire, with a
BB gun before making his getaway on a
bicycle. A 15-year-old was arrested on suspicion of possessing an
imitation firearm but police later released him without charge.
Police are now seeking another youth.
ic South London,
19 July 2007 *
A man, aged about 20, was shot
in the abdomen in a street in Woolwich, south east London, died in
hospital the following evening. It is unknown whether the killing
involved rival gangs but recent weeks have seen a dramatic increase in
gang violence in Greenwich. Two men who are on trial have denied
murder (see July 2008 Incidents).
BBC,
19 July 2007 *
The mother of a 12-year-old
girl who died after being shot at her home in Gorton, Manchester in
April 2007 (see Incidents)
has been charged with possession of a gun. She pleased guilty to
possession of a firearm (see
September 2007 Incidents).
Wirral Globe,
18 July 2007
An 18-year-old was spotted
leaning out of a car window and shooting at members of the public in
New Brighton. He was arrested and issued with a caution.
The police seized the BB gun.
The 17-year-old driver was also arrested but was not charged.
This is Cheshire,
18 July 2007
The window of a police car was
shattered after what was believed to have been an
air rifle pellet flew past the policeman
inside the vehicle. The car was parked on a road in Latchford.
Redditch Standard,
18 July 2007
A man who was out jogging in
Redditch was hit in the leg with a pellet, believed to be from an
air rifle. A group of youths,
including three boys and a girl, was seen in the area shortly after the
jogger was hit. One of the boys was said to be carrying an air
rifle.
Nottingham Evening Post,
18 July 2007
Courtney Hunt has been jailed
for a minimum of 30 years for the murder of a 17-year-old who was shot
dead in The Meadows, Nottingham, in September 2006 (see
Incidents).
His victim was once his friend but was in competition with Hunt, an
established drug dealer, and was alleged to have insulted him just before
the shooting. Hunt was also given a 12 year concurrent sentence for
possession of a firearm.
ic Coventry,
18 July 2007
An
airgun was fired at a bus in Walsgrave shattering the
windscreen and sending a shard of glass into the driver's eye. He
was treated in hospital, and police said he had been lucky not to lose the
sight in his eye.
East London and West Essex
Guardian,
18 July 2007
Two men armed with a handgun
burst into a home in Epping, Essex, and fled with an assortment of
valuable goods, including watches, a camera and a computer. The
victim answered the door at his home, was knocked to the ground and
threatened with the gun. He was left very shaken.
Citizen (Chorley),
18 July 2007
Two teenagers approached a
youth in Chorley, Lancashire, and produced an
air rifle before taking his mobile phone.
Two teenagers were arrested and charged with robbery and an air rifle
was recovered.
BBC,
18 July 2007 *
A teenager died after he was
accidentally shot in the head by a friend while out shooting on farmland
in Southease, East Sussex. The group had been aiming at birds
from a hide when he was shot. An inquest heard that Alex Bailey
jumped into his friend's line of fire. At the time he was
one-and-a-half times over the drink-drive limit for alcohol. The
coroner recorded a verdict of death by misadventure (Sussex Express,
16 July 2008).
BBC,
18 July 2007
A man has been accused of
shooting dead another man in Birmingham in April 2003. The
victim died of multiple gunshot wounds to his head and chest.
Another man was also due in court accused of possession of firearms.
BBC,
18 July 2007
A 16-year-old has been shot in
the eye with a pellet fired from a BB gun.
He was one of a group of people on playing fields in Deeping St James,
Lincolnshire. The victim was taken to hospital for treatment and was
lucky not to lose his eye. Another 16-year-old boy was arrested on
suspicion of actual bodily harm.
BBC,
18 July 2007
Replica guns, knives and cowboy clothes have been stolen by
burglars who broke into a house in Standens Barn, Northampton.
The guns were twp replica Colt revolvers in brown and black holsters and a
Smith and Wesson single-action gun.
BBC,
18 July 2007
Jaromir Kubanik and Vito
Bertone have been jailed for 12 years each for smuggling firearms and
ammunition into the UK. They were arrested in October 2006 when
customs officers found firearms components, knives and ammunition while
searching a car at Dover docks (see
Incidents). Both men were found guilty of
two counts of possessing firearms with intent to endanger life.
Reuters,
17 July 2007
Two men have been charged with
firearms offences after officers stopped a car full of guns in the
Burnage area of Manchester. Both are charged with possession of
a firearm with intent to endanger life and conspiracy to possess a firearm
with intent to endanger life.
ic Coventry,
17 July 2007
A teacher was shot in the head
at the end of a sports coaching session in a school playground in
Nuneaton. She was hit by an airgun
pellet minutes after junior school pupils had concluded an after-school
cricket session. The pellet was embedded in her scalp and she had to
have it surgically removed in hospital.
BBC,
17 July 2007
A 16-year-old was hit in the
chest in a drive-by shooting in Millharbour, east London. He
was with a group of people when a single shot was fired from a vehicle.
The victim is in a stable condition in hospital.
BBC,
17 July 2007
Police were called to a
property in Hayle, Cornwall, after reports that a man had been seen
entering with a firearm. A woman was arrested but released without
charge.
Wimbledon Guardian,
16 July 2007 *
A man died in hospital after a
double shooting in Wandsworth. The shooting took place
outside a bar. The second victim, believed to be one of the club's
bouncers, was in a stable condition. It is thought that a gunman had
opened fire with a sub-machine gun. Detectives hunting the killer
have paraded a Mac 10 sub machine gun believed to be exactly like the
murder weapon (ic South London, 5 October 2007).
The Press (York),
16 July 2007
A window cleaner was fired at
by a youth leaning out of a nearby attic window in York. The
man described how there was an almighty smack on the glass of the window
he was cleaning and he saw a lad firing from a window opposite with either
an air rifle or a
ball bearing gun. He was left
feeling shaken and comments that "if the pellet had come through the glass
[which was toughened] it could have blinded me".
ic South London,
16 July 2007
Three thieves, aged about 20,
threatened staff at a jewellers in Coulsdon with a gun.
Although they smashed cabinets with hammers they only ran off with
earrings worth just £100. The robbers fled before police arrived in
response to the panic button being pressed.
Evening Telegraph
(Peterborough),
16 July 2007
Terrified members of the
public in Spalding, Lincolnshire, called police after seeing two
men brandishing what looked like a gun in a threatening manner. Two
men were arrested for possessing an imitation
firearm with intent to cause fear of violence.
Daily Mail,
16 July 2007 *
Marvin Airey has admitted
charges of assault, grievous bodily harm and possession of a weapon
following an incident outside a school in Bristol in October 2006
(see Incidents).
He paralysed a male teacher after electrocuting him with a 950,000 volt
stun gun, an illegal weapon, and then punched a female teacher as she
tried to help. He was sentenced to six years in a young offenders'
institute (BBC, 10 September 2007).
BBC, 15 July 2007
Police officers cordoned off
an area of land in Three Mile Cross, near Reading in Berkshire,
whilst searching rural outbuildings over fears that they were being used
to convert imitation weapons into
firearms. Two men are in court accused of nine charges of firearms
offences (see July 2008
Incidents).
Express & Star,
14 July 2007
Armed police swooped on a
residential street in Bridgtown in Cannock, Staffordshire, in
response to reports of a man with a gun. They surrounded a car,
smashed its windows and removed items from the vehicle. A man was
arrested but no firearm was recovered.
Huddersfield Daily Examiner,
13 July 2007
A man was shot in the leg in a
late-night incident in Thornton Lodge, Huddersfield. The
shooting is believed to have been part of a continuing dispute between
gangs and happened when a group of about 10 youths smashed a back window
at the house. The shot man was taken to hospital.
This is Cheshire,
12 July 2007
Police are hunting for Craig
Dodd, formerly from Longford, days after he was released from
Risley Prison. He is wanted for breaking the terms of his release
and breaching his licence. Dodd had been jailed last year after
being sentenced to two years for possession of an
imitation firearm with intent to cause
fear and violence. It is reported that he has a history of violence.
ic The Wharf,
12 July 2007
Two people, a man and a woman,
were forced to hand over several items by a group of men brandishing a
silver handgun in Mudchute Park on the Isle of Dogs in east London.
The weapon had a slide and was not a revolver. This incident, which
occurred last month, happened a day before another armed robbery in the
area in which a silver handgun was used at Limehouse DLR station
(see June 2007 Incidents).
BBC,
12 July 2007
An armed gang attacked a man
with a hammer and robbed him at gunpoint in an incident in Dudley,
West Midlands. The victim had his car keys, car and mobile phone
stolen. The police said that he had been threatened with a handgun
by seven offenders who demanded money.
Reuters,
11 July 2007
A man was arrested near
Downing Street in London in possession of an
imitation gun. A police officer
spotted what he believed to be a gun in the man's car. There had
been no security breach.
Horncastle News,
11 July 2007 *
Children in Caistor,
Lincolnshire, were ushered back into school when air rifle shots were
fired in their direction from a nearby house. Police seized an
air rifle and arrested two teenagers.
They were later released without charge.
The Herald (Plymouth),
11 July 2007
Two Royal Marines have been
chastised by police after they were spotted with a
BB gun whilst sitting in their car at a
car park in Plymouth. A woman believed than one of the men
was holding an automatic pistol on his lap. Her husband saw a
magazine being pulled from the gun and then replaced. Plymouth
police said that the two men were 'given advice' and told not to carry the
recently purchased gun in public view again.
BBC,
10 July 2007
An armed man walked into a
convenience store in Lanesfield, Wolverhampton, and stole cash from
the till. No shots were fired and no-one was injured.
BBC,
10 July 2007
Police have released a CCTV
image of two men alleged to have carried out a multi-million pound
jewellery theft in West London. The suspects arrived in a
Bentley, entered the shop and spoke to staff and then pulled out guns.
Argus (Brighton),
10 July 2007
A gunman escaped with a cash
box after holding up a security van delivering money to a bank in
Worthing. Police said that the raider threatened the two guards
using a "small handgun".
Norwich Evening News,
9 July 2007
A seven-hour stand off took
place between an man and police after neighbours spotted him in his back
garden in Earlham, Norfolk, firing a gun and wielding a machete.
They feared the firearm was dangerous. Officers finally stormed the
property, arrested the man and seized the machete and what is believed to
have been a BB gun. He was being
question on suspicion of possession of a firearm.
MK News,
9 July 2007
Police are hunting a gunman
who attacked a flat in Milton Keynes. The residents were
woken by a bang and the sound of broken glass. No one was injured.
BBC,
9 July 2007
A man was arrested on
suspicion of possessing firearms with intent to cause fear after police
received reports of a gun being brandished at a party in Eastington,
Gloucestershire. An air rifle
and a handgun which fires pellets were
recovered at the address where the man was arrested.
BBC,
9 July 2007
In a drive-by shooting in the
Heaton Mersey area of Stockport, Cheshire, a man was shot in the
chest. He was being treated in hospital where he was in a stable
condition.
BBC,
9 July 2007
Police are appealing for
information following reports of a gun fight in Harlesden, north
west London.
BBC,
9 July 2007
A man was in a serious
condition after suffering suspected gunshot wounds when he was attacked by
two men on a motorcycle in Bow, east London. His condition is
not believed to be life threatening.
BBC,
9 July 2007
Two men were shot outside a
pub in Willenhall, West Midlands, after an altercation between two
groups of men. A man was also stabbed during the incident. One
shooting victim, who was hit in the neck, is in a critical but stable
condition, the other who was shot in the leg and stomach has since been
discharged from hospital. Two 19-year-olds have been charged with
attempted murder and one of them has been charged with possessing a
firearm (BBC, 14 July 2007).
This is Nottingham,
7 July 2007
A teenager says he is lucky to
be alive after being shot with an airgun.
He was walking a dog with a friend through a part in St Ann's,
Nottingham, when he was hit in the arm. He was taken to hospital for
treatment, is still off school and will not be allowed to play sports
until he is fully recovered.
BBC,
7 July 2007
A 16-year-old boy has been
injured in a shooting in Hulme, Greater Manchester. He was
hit in the buttock by one of a number of shots fired from a group of
people. The victim is in hospital and his condition is described as
stable.
BBC,
7 July 2007
A man was arrested after an
armed response team was called to a property in Exeter following
reports of a man threatening someone with a gun. Armed officers
seized two BB guns.
BBC,
7 July 2007
An armed man held up a petrol
station in Hazlemere, Buckinghamshire. He pointed a gun at
the cashier and cash was handed over in distinctive plastic canisters
which the robber put in a white plastic carrier bag.
Bolton News,
6 July 2007
Oliver Kettle ran amok with a
blank firing imitation Glock handgun,
firing four rounds into the air when he was drunk after a party in
Bolton in March 2007. Two pain clothes police officers who were
called to the scene were threatened by Kettle. He refused to drop
the gun but was pinned to the ground and arrested. He pleaded guilty
to possession of a firearm and was jailed for two years.
Scunthorpe Telegraph,
5 July 2007
A man was held at gunpoint in
a street in Scunthorpe and made to hand over his wallet. The
victim was beckoned over to a car as he walked along the road and the
passenger then pulled a gun and demanded the wallet.
ic Coventry,
5 July 2007
A youth with an
air rifle shot out decorative lights
mounted in the gates of a house in Wilmcote. Pellets
shattered the bulbs and the lamps' plastic casing.
BBC,
5 July 2007 *
A 20-year-old man was shot
dead in a minicab in Enfield, north London. The police
believe shots were fired from a van which followed the minicab into a car
park. The victim was shot as he got out of the cab.
BBC,
5 July 2007
A woman in a wheelchair was
shot in the chest with an airgun while
she tended her husband's grave at the cemetery in Newark,
Nottinghamshire. She heard a popping sound before feeling a burning
sensation in her chest. She was treated for shock at the scene.
This is Lancashire,
4 July 2007
An armed robber escaped with
around £500 in cash after terrorising staff at a takeaway in South
Shore. He demanded money from the till while pointing a gun at
staff.
ic South London,
4 July 2007
After Reggie Sackey had been
stopped for not wearing a seat belt whilst driving in Tooting,
police found a handgun wrapped in a sock and wedged between his buttocks.
The 8mm pistol was a converted firearm. Officers had found a small
bag of marijuana in his car and arrested him. He pleaded guilty of
possessing a firearm, seven rounds of ammunition and herbal cannabis.
He also admitted a charge of possessing a firearm within a prohibited
period after leaving prison. Sentencing was adjourned.
East Anglian Daily Times,
4 July 2007
A teenager has told how she
watched in horror as two gunmen fled after robbing a security guard and
firing a warning shot. She was working at a pharmacy in
Colchester when she and her colleagues heard a gunshot. The
gunmen had confronted the guard as he delivered cash to a bank and
snatched a cash box.
Daily Echo,
4 July 2007
A mother and her
eight-week-old son were at the scene of two
airgun shootings in Wyke Regis, Dorset. In the
first incident a seagull was shot and fell near the baby as he played.
In the other incident they were on a bus when shots from an air weapon
broke two nearby windows.
BBC,
3 July 2007
A former Royal protection
officer has denied charges of dangerous driving, possessing a firearm with
intent to cause fear and false imprisonment. The charges follow an
incident in November 2006 (see
Incidents) when a photographer is alleged to have been held at
gunpoint after he took photos of the man at his home in Chafford Hundred,
Essex, and was then chased by car to a roundabout near the Lakeside
shopping centre in Thurrock where the incident took place.
The man has been cleared of threatening the photographer with a gun (Times,
28 July 2007).
BBC,
3 July 2007
A bookmakers in Englefield
Green, Surrey, was robbed by two men. Staff were threatened with
a gun by the men who demanded money from the safe. They fled with
£800 in a plastic bag.
Cambs24,
2 July 2007
An 18-year-old man received
minor injuries after being shot with what is believed to have been an
air rifle as he worked at an industrial
estate in Eaton Socon, Cambridgeshire. The man was working
with a colleague on scaffolding at the site when several shots were fired.
BBC,
2 July 2007
Two men, one carrying a
handgun and the other a knife, walked into a shop in Filton,
Bristol, and demanded the shopkeeper handed over cash. Money and
beer were stolen, but the beer together with clothing was dropped close
by.
BBC,
2 July 2007
A court has heard how ball
bearings, and a hoard of weapons including an
airgun and several BB guns
were found during a two-day search of a house in Colne, Lancashire,
belonging to one of two men accused of conspiracy to cause an explosion
with chemicals ordered over the internet. The man admits possessing
explosives, a charge denied by the other defendant. Robert Cottage
was jailed for two and a half years (Guardian, 31 July 2007).
BBC,
1 July 2007
A teenager was robbed of
headphones at gunpoint when he was approached by a group of teenagers in
Preston. The victim was treated in hospital for minor
injuries.
BBC,
29 June 2007 *
Edward Edrich, who pleaded
guilty to the manslaughter of his wife on the grounds of diminished
responsibility, has been given a Mental Health Act hospital order.
His wife died from shotgun injuries to her neck and chest at their home in
Lowfield Heath, near Crawley in Sussex in January 2007 (see
February 2007 Incidents).
BBC,
29 June 2007
A 10-year-old boy was arrested
on suspicion of causing actual bodily harm after children were hit with
pellets in the grounds of a junior school in Laindon, Essex.
Police believe the children were shot at with a
ball-bearing gun. Four of the seven victims of the attack
needed medical attention (Sun, 30 June 2007).
Manchester Evening News,
28 June 2007
A 15-year-old from Sale
has been banned from possessing any pellet gun,
ball-bearing gun or
air rifle as well as holding an axe or a
firework as part of a wide-reaching Asbo. Billy Edmunds has also
been barred from an entire estate in Trafford. The teenager had a
history of aggressive behaviour.
ic The Wharf,
28 June 2007 *
A man was dragged to the floor
and threatened with a silver handgun during a mugging near Limehouse
DLR station in east London. He was punched and kicked and made to
hand over his wallet and phone. He was unable to tell whether the
weapon was real. He needed treatment in hospital for bruising and a
wound to the head which required stitches.
BBC,
28 June 2007
Two cars have been damaged by
what are believed to have been shots from an air
weapon as they were being driven on the A68 between Tow Law
and Butsfield in County Durham.
BBC,
28 June 2007
Neville Wooley, 18, has been
jailed for three years for threatening a man with a shotgun at Harpury
College, Gloucester, in May 2007. He admitted possessing a
firearm with intent to cause fear of violence.
BBC,
28 June 2007
A man was taken to hospital
after being shot in the chest with an airgun.
His injury was described as "nasty" but not life-threatening. A
house in Kirton, Lincolnshire, was later searched and a number of
firearms were recovered. A man has been arrested,
St Albans & Harpenden Review,
27 June 2007
A helicopter was scrambled
after a woman had her mobile phone stolen in Smallford, St Albans,
by a man thought to be armed with a handgun. No one was caught.
ic Coventry,
27 June 2007
A man was seriously injured
when blasted with a shotgun during an armed raid at a rugby club's social
club in Henley Green, Coventry. He was hurt when he chased
after two masked robbers who had threatened staff and stolen takings from
the safe.
BBC,
27 June 2007
Two men have been arrested
after armed police surrounded a home in Hull following reports of a
gunman holding another man hostage. Officers closed off the street
while they controlled the situation.
BBC,
27 June 2007
Armed police raided a house in
the Filton area of Bristol after reports that a gun had been
discharged. Following an hour-long stand-off police are questioning
one person. One man sustained minor injuries after jumping from a
window.
Southern Daily Echo,
26 June 2007
A man fell 8ft onto concrete
steps, injuring his spine, chest and ribs as he tried to escape from a
masked gunman in Woolston, Southampton. The victim found the
gunman in his house holding a handgun in the hallway when he returned
home.
BBC,
26 June 2007
A car was stolen at gunpoint
from a man and woman, aged in their 80s, as they parked the vehicle
in Wallsend, Tyneside. The car was later seen being driven
erratically with three men inside and was recovered in Walker. The
gunman showed the couple a shotgun but did not point the weapon at them.
BBC,
24 June 2007
Five people have been arrested
after a haul of weapons and chemicals were found at properties in
Kempston, Bedfordshire, and Milton Keynes. Police discovered CS
spray and BB guns at the Kempston
property. The police had been alerted after a package of stun guns
was intercepted at Heathrow Airport.
Shropshire Star,
23 June 2007
A gunman opened fire on the
dancefloor of a Shrewsbury nightclub. One man was shot in the
arm. Hundreds of revellers fled to safety after the shooting.
A man with a gun threatened another man at a nearby takeaway shortly after
and police are linking the two incidents (Shropshire Star, 25 June
2007).
itv.com,
23 June 2007 *
A teenage woman who was
shot in a bar in Tottenham, north London, has died in hospital.
The shooting occurred during a row in the bar. A 21-year-old has
pleaded not guilty to murder. Three other people have appeared in
court to face related charges (BBC, 29 November 2007). A man
has been found guilty of killing the woman (see
January 2009 Incidents)
BBC,
23 June 2007
A murder inquiry is under way
after a man was shot dead in a street in Acton, west London.
ic South London,
22 June 2007
According to a Lambeth
youth worker children as young as 10 are being arrested for firearms
offences. She said that four 10-year-olds had been arrested
recently, but Lambeth police said they had no record of this.
Evening Telegraph (Peterborough),
22 June 2007
Robert Koperek took a
BB gun from his car after he had got into
an argument in a bar in Peterborough in March 2007. He was
drunk at the time and pointed the gun, which he had bought for £25 at a
market stall, at the bar manager's head and then hit him over the head
with the gun twice. Koperek pleaded guilty to possession of an
imitation firearm with intent to cause fear and causing actual bodily
harm. He was given a suspended 12-month jail sentence, ordered to
carry out 180 hours of unpaid work and to pay his victim £750 in
compensation.
BBC,
22 June 2007
Police investigating a caravan
crash on the M5 near Avonmouth have arrested the driver on
suspicion of possessing a prohibited weapon. During a search of the
vehicle the police found a police-style baton and a stun gun loaded with
CS spray.
BBC,
21 June 2007
A man from Plymouth has been
arrested after police seized an unregistered shotgun. Officers were
called to the St Judes area to reports that a bird had been killed
and cars damaged. The gun and shotgun cartridges were found at an
address in the area.
Channel 4 News,
20 June 2007
An armed police officer
accidentally fired a weapon inside a police station in Exeter,
damaging a patrol car. He has been removed from firearms operations.
BBC,
20 June 2007
An armed gang threatened to
shoot a sub-postmistress in her shop in Denshaw, Greater
Manchester. The men were armed with an axe, a large knife and a gun.
As one man kept guard at the door the other two took money and other
items. The stolen car used by the gang was later found abandoned.
Post Offices Ltd is offering a reward for information leading to the
conviction and arrest of the men responsible.
BBC,
19 June 2007
Police were called to Bury,
Greater Manchester, to investigate reports that a man who had been sitting
in a car had been shot by two men. No-one was injured.
Gazette,
18 June 2007
Nine
BB guns were seized by police after young people were seen
carrying them in public in Hook, Hampshire. The guns looked
so authentic that from several feet the police struggled to tell the
difference from a real pistol. Six guns were taken from youngsters
aged between 12 and 14 after they were spotted by an off duty officer.
The guns were bought from a stall at a market in Yateley which
police and trading standards are now investigating. The marker
manager said that they didn't let stallholders sell BB guns. Three
other BB guns were handed into police by parents.
BBC,
18 June 2007 *
Police have mounted extra
patrols in an area of Blackburn after two shots were fired at a
house. It is believed that the shooting could be linked to a fight
between two groups of youths. Three people have been arrested in
connection with both incidents. One man has been detained under the
Mental Health Act (BBC, 20 June 2007). Three men have now
been jailed for a total of 31 years for possession of a firearm with
intent to endanger life (see
May 2008 Incidents).
This is Hampshire, 16 June 2007
A convenience store in Dibden
Purlieu, Hampshire, was raided by a masked gunman armed with a silver
handgun. He demanded money and cigarettes, which were handed to him by
a member of staff and placed in a carrier bag.
Leicester Mercury, 16 June 2007 *
A gun collector, Kenneth
Milburn, who kept illegal pistols at his house in Enderby has been
jailed for five years. His home was raided in July 2005 and Army bomb
disposal experts were called in to remove an arsenal which included 12
rifles, 12 shotguns, 18 air weapons and
about 100 antique weapons. There was also a quantity of bullets and
cartridges. He was charged with owning 12 banned handguns and had
pleaded guilty to possession of them.
Evening Chronicle (Newcastle), 16 June 2007
A masked gunman burst into a
family post office in Ryton, Gateshead, with a sawn-off shotgun.
Before the man could do anything the couple behind the counter darted into
their adjoining house and called the police. The man escaped empty
handed.
BBC, 16 June 2007 *
One man has died and another has
been injured following a shooting in the centre of Manchester.
Both victims were taken to hospital but one of them died later. The
other man's condition was not thought to be life-threatening. Four men
have been arrested in connection with his murder and that of another man who
was shot dead at his funeral in Chorlton-on-Medlock in July 2007 (see
January 2008 Incidents).
Daily Mail, 14 June 2007
A secondary schoolteacher from
Oldham, who has kept a record of abusive or threatening behaviour at
his school, includes an incident of a child parading a
ball-bearing gun in the classroom in the
dossier.
Hereford Times, 14 June 2007
A 13-year-old girl received
injuries to her arm and knee after being shot with a
ball-bearing gun from a passing car in
Leominster. She was walking down the street with a friend at the
time of the attack which resulted in two flesh wounds to her arm and two in
each knee. A youth was arrested on suspicion of assault and issued
with a reprimand.
Gazette, 14 June 2007
Two 15-year-olds have been
criticised after they were seen brandishing an imitation firearm in Yate,
South Gloucestershire. Officers had received reports that a teenager
was in possession of a handgun in a park. Police recovered the
BB gun from a rubbish bin. One of the
teenagers has been released on bail, the other has been given a reprimand.
Express & Star, 14 June 2007
The Independent Police
Complaints Commission (IPCC) have criticised Staffordshire Police's armed
response unit for its tactics during an operation in Rugeley in
August 2006 (see Incidents).
A police officer misfired a bullet during a series of blunders leading to a
man having two fingers shot off. The man, David Shepherd, was shot
twice outside a school after he was seen leaning out of his car window
holding what appeared to be a handgun. When Shepherd was arrested it
was discovered that the firearm was a ball-bearing
gun. Shepherd was given a six year jail sentence in
February 2007 (see Incidents).
Bolton News, 14 June 2007
A man was kidnapped by a gang of
three who jumped on him as he was walking home in Bolton, threatening
him with a handgun and a Samurai sword. They demanded he get in the
car and took him to Leverhulme Park where they told him he had three days to
give them £10,000 or they would "chop his fingers off". The victim
contacted the police as soon as the gang abandoned him. Officers have
fitted a panic button linked to police at his home.
BBC, 14 June 2007
Shots are thought to have been
fired during a fight involving 10 men in Southampton during which a
man was chased and stabbed. According to police no-one suffered any
gunshot wounds. Two people have been arrested.
BBC, 14 June 2007
A man brandishing what appeared
to be a dark grey pistol attempted to rob a store in Northampton.
The man, in his late teens, walked into the store, produced the weapon and
demanded that the till be opened. The offender fled the store after
the till wasn't opened.
This is Lancashire, 13 June 2007
A masked gunman robbed two women
cashiers at a petrol station in Higher Ince, Wigan. The man,
armed with a handgun, walked into the kiosk and demanded money. No one
was injured but the two women were left extremely shaken and distressed.
BBC, 13 June 2007
A 14-year-old boy and a man in
his twenties have been arrested by armed police officers called to a park in
Wellingborough, Northamptonshire, after reports of a group of people
handling a gun. Police seized air rifles
and imitation guns.
Both of those arrested were later released with a caution.
BBC, 13 June 2007
A man was shot on the driveway
of a house in Walsall. The victim was taken to hospital, but
his injuries are not believed to be life-threatening.
Redditch Advertiser, 12 June 2007
A teenager was walking along a
street in Headless Cross when the driver of a taxi drove past and
shot her with a paintball, covering her
in green paint. She says she is now frightened of going out at night
after the incident. The paintball hit her so hard that she fell over
and hurt one of her toes.
Peterborough Evening Telegraph, 12 June 2007
A woman was hit in the back with
a small plastic pellet fired from an airgun
as she was standing in front of a house in Chatteris,
Cambridgeshire. The victim received minor injuries.
Gazette & Herald,
11 June 2007 *
Scott Symonds, 18, of
Penhill, Swindon, has admitted a charge of possessing an imitation
firearm with intent to cause fear of violence and criminal damage to a
van. He had threatened a woman with the gun, a
Skif A3000 air weapon, by pointing the
gun into the face of the victim. He denied an allegation of common
assault and criminal damage to the victim's door. Symonds, who was
currently in custody was remanded until July and the judge ordered a
pre-sentence report. He has been jailed for two years (Swindon
Advertiser, 9 July 2007).
BBC,
11 June 2007
A 19-year-old youth was
arrested for carrying an imitation gun
which he had bought for £8 at a car boot sale. An armed response
unit attended a retail park and monitored the situation before arresting
the man when a car was stopped by four officers in Wootton,
Northamptonshire. Chief Constable Peter Maddison called the act of
carrying the gun "extremely irresponsible because it put the man's life in
danger". The man was given a conditional discharge by magistrates.
BBC,
11 June 2007 *
A court has heard that a man
attempted to murder a police officer simply because he wanted to shoot a
policeman. A plain clothes officers was shot twice in the shoulder
in Wolverhampton in November 2006 (see
Incidents) after a first shot had missed
him. He underwent a four-hour operation to repair a damaged artery.
Marcus Bailey denied attempted murder and two counts of possessing a
firearm but was convicted and sentenced to a minimum of 15 years in jail (BBC,
19 June 2007). Bailey has received a further sentence for possession
of a Mauser pistol (see June
2008 Incidents).
BBC,
11 June 2007
Two teenagers were shot by a
gang of five men who were driving in a car that had been stolen at
gunpoint in Hulme, Greater Manchester. The teenagers were
targeted in Moss Side. It is thought that two of the men in
the car were holding handguns and they fired a number of shots towards the
boys. The car was recovered a short time later. Both teenagers
suffered minor injuries in the shooting.
BBC, 11 June 2007 *
A woman has been shot and killed
by armed police in Sevenoaks, Kent. They were called after a
woman with a gun was seen in the centre of the town. The woman was
given first aid at the scene but pronounced dead. A firearm was
recovered. The Independent Police Complaints Commission
said that an investigation would be carried out.
An inquest jury has ruled that
Ann Sanderson, who had a GT-10 Repeater .177 airgun,
was lawfully killed (BBC, 29 July 2010).
News Shopper, 10 June 2007
Police are hunting three men who
burgled and threatened a couple with a handgun in Orpington, Kent.
The couple were assaulted and threatened before being tied up. The
suspects stole over £6000 in British and Hong Kong currency, along with
several items of jewellery.
BBC, 9 June 2007
A man was recovering after a gun
attack in Swinton, Greater Manchester. The victim was found by
police in the front garden of a property and had been shot in the leg.
His injury is not believed to be life-threatening.
Willesden & Brent Times, 8 June 2007
Eighteen-year-old Jerrell Gourde
will serve at least six years behind bars after shooting a 16-year-old in
the stomach with a sawn-off shotgun in a recreation ground in Neasden
in November 2006. Gourde was high on cocaine at the time and acted in
revenge after rowing with the younger teenager when he crashed into him on
his pedal cycle at the park entrance. His victim had threatened him with a
brick. Gourde was convicted of attempted murder in April.
Wigan Today, 8 June 2007
A pensioner had a rifle-style gun
pointed at her after chasing a youngster who fled from East Leigh
Labour Club when he saw her. The boy ran across the road before
turning back and training the gun on her, then aimed at a window before
pulling the trigger. It is believed that the weapon was probably a
BB gun.
Richmond and Twickenham
Times, 8 June 2007
Armed police were called to
Richmond station after an off duty officer thought he saw a man with a
small silver handgun in his trousers. The man was chased along the railway
line towards Kew and then into Old Deer Park but was lost. Because no
crime was committed as the sighting of the gun was not confirmed and no suspect
or gun was found, there is no investigation according to British Transport
Police.
Hackney
Gazette, 8 June 2007
A man out walking his dog in
Dalston was forced to hand over the puppy to a four-strong gang who
threatened to shoot him unless he let go of the puppy. A car pulled up
alongside him and two passengers leapt out and started asking questions
about the dog. One of them took hold of the lead and after a struggle
put his hand down the waistband of his trousers as if to get a gun and
threatened to shoot the owner.
Bedford Today, 8 June 2007
Kieran Johnson carried out a
raid on a post office and newsagents in Henlow in July 2006 (see
August 2006 Incidents)
to get money for heroin. He has pleaded guilty to robbery and
possessing an imitation firearm with
intent and was jailed for four years. He held up the couple who ran
the post office with a small imitation handgun and a knife. He made
his escape on bicycle pursued by the shopkeeper but got away by
riding over the foot of another man who tried to stop him.
BBC, 8 June 2007
Mark Mawson, a psychiatric
patient, took a woman hostage in a siege at a house in Chadwell St Mary
in Essex using an imitation gun he had
fashioned a weapon out of marker pens taped to a vacuum cleaner handle.
He had absconded from a hospital while on a trip in February 2007 and
entered his girlfriend's mother's home. The woman was not injured in
the siege which ended when police fired a baton round and threw grenades
into the building.
BBC, 8 June 2007
Three teenagers have been
arrested after an incident in East Bridgford, Nottingham, when a man
walked up to a taxi and tapped a gun on the window to distract the driver.
At the same time the passengers, two teenage girls, got out without paying
their fare and ran off with the man. Police arrested an 18-year-old
man and two girls aged 15 and 16.
This
is Local London, 7 June 2007
A man, registered with Kent
Police as a firearms dealer, is on trial after he was caught allegedly
selling illegal pistols from his home. Police seized a cache of
around 900 firearms from the house in Dartford in September 2006
(see Incidents).
According to the prosecution, the haul included illegal weapons
including Browning semi-automatic pistols, double-barrelled shotguns,
Remington double-barrelled pistols and Wild West-style Colt single-shot
guns. The defendant claims all the guns are antiques. He was
arrested after Operation Trident officers recovered a Smith and Wesson
revolver from a youth in the Old Kent Road in December 2005. The
man was accused of
conspiracy to possess firearms
with intent to cause fear of violence, eight counts of selling or
transferring a prohibited weapon, 12 counts of possessing a prohibited
weapon and one count of possessing explosives. Nine of the 22
charges were dropped (BBC, 22 June 2007). He was found not
guilty of all the remaining 13 charges (BBC, 29 June 2007).
Huddersfield Daily Examiner,
7 June 2007
A mother was shot in front of
her two children when youths opened fire with an
airgun from the grounds of a church in Kirkheaton.
The family were at a popular funfair. The victim had a .22 pellet
removed in hospital and has six stitches from the middle of her mouth to
the back of her teeth. Two other women were injured by a volley of
shots. An airgun was recovered from the church graveyard after the
incident, and two youths, aged 15 and 16, were arrested and released on
bail pending further inquiries. It was reported that a few days
earlier a group of four teenagers had been spotted with an air rifle in
the graveyard and a youth had been seen to shoot a pigeon out of the
trees. After an argument with the group the witness believes he was
shot at and called the police right away, but learnt later that no patrol
car had been sent for three hours.
BBC,
7 June 2007
Dean Stanbury has been jailed
for at least six years after he was found guilty of wounding with intent
and a firearms charge. He shot a policeman and fired shots at two
other officers on a busy street in Leytonstone, east London, when he
opened fire after discovering that the officers were keeping him under
surveillance in June 2006 (see
Incidents). He was cleared of three counts of attempted
murder by the court.
Sky News,
6 June 2007
A serving soldier has been
charged with illegal possession of ammunition after being arrested at a
barracks at Thorney Island near Chichester. It is believed
that police officers from Operation Trident were acting on a tip-off over
the sale of army-issue bullets. He has been jailed for three years
(see September 2007 Incidents).
Lewes Today,
6 June 2007
Cars were shot at with an
air rifle as they drove through an estate
in Lewes, Sussex. Three drivers were shocked to be targeted.
None of the drivers was injured but the windscreen of one of the cars was
smashed.
BBC,
6 June 2007
Armed robbers threatened staff
at a bank in Goring, West Sussex, with a pistol before fleeing on a
motorbike. The two men stole a quantity of cash. No shots were
fired but staff were left shocked by the incident.
News & Star,
5 June 2007 *
A gunman demanded cash from a
cashier at a post office in Arnside, Cumbria. After the
incident the man was seen being driven away in a car. Martin
Bullough and David Atkinson have admitted robbery and possessing an
imitation firearm. Bullough has
been jailed for six years and Atkinson five year (Lakeland Echo, 24
July 2007).
Hereford Times,
5 June 2007
Police in Herefordshire have
issued a warning about the use of BB guns
in public places. The warning comes after an increasing number of
incidents in which individuals - many of them teenagers - have been seen
carrying and sometimes firing the weapons in Hereford city centre.
In recent weeks BB guns were confiscated from teenagers after they were
reported firing them inside an underpass. A 21-year-old man was
arrested after two motorists reported having pellets fired at the
vehicles on Hereford's ring road. One of the pellets struck
a female moped rider on her helmet.
BBC,
4 June 2007 *
A street in Avenham,
Preston, was cordoned off by police after locals reported hearing gunshots
being fired. Officers took away a car they were examining. Two
men are one trial after being charged with various offences in connection
with the incident (see December
2007 Incidents).
Sunday Telegraph,
3 June 2007
Philip Cottam has admitted
having an air rifle in a public place
and possessing an offensive weapon. This follows an incident in a
bar in Sheffield in March 2007 when actress Joanna Lumley saw a
weapon fall to the floor from a man's bag. She talked to the man
while police, alerted by others in the bar, rushed to the scene. The
weapon was a gas-propelled airgun that was loaded with 13 pellets.
Cottam told police he was taking the gun to a shop to have a laser sight
fitted to it but had stopped for a drink. He was given a four-month
jail term suspended for 12 months and placed on a curfew until he begins a
rehabilitation placement.
Observer,
3 June 2007
Two 12-year-olds were being
questioned by police after a bus driver was shot in the face aboard a bus
in North Baddersley, near Southampton. The pair demanded cash
before one of them drew an airgun and
fired shots at the driver. The victim was not badly hurt.
BBC,
3 June 2007
An armed men threatened
members of the public in a street in Lincoln with a knife and an
air rifle. Armed police were called
out and a man was arrested on suspicion of possessing an offensive weapon.
No-one was injured during the incident.
BBC,
3 June 2007 *
A masked gunman shot dead a
man in Romford, Essex. The victim is believed to have driven
to the scene and was shot when he walked towards a van parked there.
It is thought that the gunman emerged from nearby shrubbery. Three
men have been convicted of murder (see
February 2009 Incidents).
Hartlepool Mail, 2 June 2007
In a second attack reported
by the newspaper, a teenager was left with blurred vision after a gang
of youths fired a ball-bearing handgun
at him in an unprovoked attack in Peterlee. The shot
resulted in a bruised iris. The perpetrators were said to be
around 18 years old.
Hartlepool Mail, 2 June 2007
A 12-year-old schoolgirl was
shot twice with a ball-bearing gun
in the West View area of Hartlepool by a balaclava-clad attacker.
She was shot in the neck and leg in what police said could have had
"horrific consequences".
Pendle Today, 1 June 2007
A powerful
air rifle has been stolen from a pigeon
loft on an allotment in Colne. The Deirach .22 calibre
under-lever gun is a type often used for killing vermin and shooting rabbits
and was taken from an unlocked wooden shed.
BBC,
1 June 2007
Three masked intruders broke
into the home of a man in the Parson Cross area of Sheffield and
threatened him with a shotgun. The man and his family were uninjured
but shaken. The men had demanded cash, but police say they were
unsure of the motive.
BBC,
1 June 2007
A large amount of cash has
been stolen in an armed raid in Croydon, south London. Up to
eight people entered the American Express shop and threatened staff with a
gun, which was also fired. The gang ran off to two waiting cars.
Grantham Today,
31 May 2007
In addition to the incident
in Long Bennington (see below), Lincolnshire police have had to
deal with a number of incidents involving BB
guns. A BB gun was seized in Grantham after a
member of the public reported seeing something with what they thought
was a long-barrelled shotgun. Two days later, also in Grantham,
the windscreen of a car was struck by a BB pellet, and later a woman
walking in the same street was hit in the ribcage by a BB pellet which
left a mark on her skin.
BBC,
31 May 2007 *
A civilian police support
worker has been shot during a Thames Valley Police "firearms awareness
training session" at Kidlington, Oxfordshire. The man was
in a serious but stable condition in hospital. The incident will
be investigated by the Independent Police Complaints Commission.
The IPCC will examine how a Glock 9 mm pistol came to have a live round,
why the safety catch was not on, and whether the officer checked the
status of the gun before the lesson (Times, 1 June 2007).
The Crown Prosecution Service has said that it will not be bringing any
charges, but the IPCC has written to Thames Valley Police to ask for
their proposals, if any, on disciplinary action and the Health and
Safety Executive is continuing a separate inquiry (BBC, 3 January
2008). A Thames Valley Police officer will face a misconduct
hearing (BBC, 20 August 2008) and the victim is to sue the force
over the incident (BBC, 11 December 2008). Thames Valley
Police has pleaded guilty to breaching health and safety rules (see
July 2009 Incidents)
and a police officer has pleaded guilty to offences under the 1974
Health and Safety Act (see
September 2009 Incidents).
BBC,
31 May 2007
John McSally has been
convicted of murder and attempted murder and has been ordered to serve a
minimum of 35 years. McSally was the hitman who gunned down two
men in Basford, Nottingham in 2004 (see
Incidents). One of the men was
shot dead outside a pub in February, the other victim was shot on his
driveway in May but survived. Another man was cleared of murder,
and a woman was also cleared of perverting the course of justice.
BBC,
31 May 2007
Police officers were called
to Long Bennington, Lincolnshire, after a woman reported seeing a
young man run past her with what she thought was a firearm. Two
youths, 14 and 16, were found with BB guns
which were seized. The two teenagers were given a warning.
Another BB gun had been seized in a similar incident a few days earlier.
Yorkshire Evening Post,
30 May 2007
British Transport Police are
to crackdown on one of the worst areas for missile-throwing on the
railways in the north-east region. Among recent incidents at
Neville Hill, at Osmondthorpe in Leeds, a train was shot at with an
airgun.
Reading Evening Post,
30 May 2007
Four masked raiders held bar
staff at gunpoint and knifepoint while they robbed the takings of a pub
in Caversham. Two of the men were armed with guns and two
had knives. A gun was held to the face of one staff member and the
staff were forced to go into the office. The raid bears
similarities to an armed robbery at another pub at Playhatch, also in
the Reading area, earlier in the month (see below), and the police
believe the two are linked.
Milton Keynes Citizen,
30 May 2007
Police were called to
reports that men armed with a gun were trying to attack the occupants of
a house in Grange Farm. Three men have been arrested
East London Advertiser,
30 May 2007
Baris Boran has been jailed
for seven years. He had brandished a loaded Browning handgun when
he tried to escape after police had stopped a car in Stamford Hill,
north London, in July 2006. Boran admitted four charges including
possessing a firearm with intent to commit an indictable offence,
possessing a prohibited weapon and possessing a loaded firearm in a
public place
East Anglian Daily Times,
30 May 2007
An robber armed with a
handgun threatened two female members of staff and a female customer at
a bookmakers in Haverhill, Suffolk. Cash was handed over by
staff. The police are linking the robbery to previous armed
robberies of bookmakers in Haverhill as well as a series of other armed
robberies across the country.
BBC,
30 May 2007
A car clamper, George
McDicken, admitted making three abusive phone calls to a police station
in Keighley, in one of which he threatened to shoot an police
officer involved in bringing an Asbo against him because of his clamping
activities. He was given a 12-month conditional discharge.
BBC,
30 May 2007
Seven masked men, one armed
with a gun, robbed a woman and her son in their home in Hulme,
Manchester. The gang demanded the woman's car keys before stealing
the vehicle which was parked outside. A stereo system was also
taken by one of the men.
BBC,
30 May 2007
Nottinghamshire police have
urged people living in Mansfield and Ashfield to help them
reduce the number of incidents involving air
weapons. There were 33 reported offences in the area
between 1 January and 2 May. They have asked people to report
anyone seen misusing them, adding that "Some people think air weapons
are toys, but that is far from the truth".
Oxford Mail,
29 May 2007
A man who was seen on CCTV
pointing a gun at passers-by as he walked down a street in Oxford
was arrested by armed police on suspicion of possessing a firearm.
Although the weapon turned out to be a toy gun,
a police spokesman said that "firearms are something the police take
extremely seriously and it's not possible to distinguish at a distance
whether or not the weapon is real. We urge people not to take toy guns
into public places". The man was released without charge.
News & Star,
29 May 2007
A councillor in Carlisle is
calling for tighter controls on airguns after windows in Harraby
were smashed with an airgun.
Hundreds of pounds worth of damage have been caused to office windows.
Councillor June Martlew has said that airguns need to be licensed.
"I don't think anyone under the age of 18 should be able to have an
airgun. They should be subject to the same laws as other guns."
East Anglian Daily Times,
29 May 2007
Two men threatened a bar
steward at a social club in Lakenheath, Suffolk, with a firearm
and a wooden stave as he was locking up. The pair made off on foot
after stealing a quantity of cash.
Shropshire Star,
28 May 2007
Armed police were called to
a supermarket in Leominster after witnesses reported seeing a man
waving what appeared to be a handgun. The store had to be
evacuated. A man was arrested but no firearms were found by the
police.
BBC,
28 May 2007 *
A man is recovering in
hospital after being shot in the stomach during an incident involving
two gangs of men in the Clarksfield area of Oldham. A man
has been charged with attempted murder (BBC, 13 June 2007).
This is Lancashire,
27 May 2007
Thomas Beard has been jailed
for five years after police found an air rifle,
ammunition and 66 CS gas cartridges at his caravan at Clayton-le-Dale.
Although it was claimed that the weapon had only been used to shoot
vermin and rabbits, the judge told Beard that the danger was that the
weapons could have gone into wider circulation. The police had
found two air weapons, one of which was the subject of a charge because
it had a muzzle which exceeded the specifications. The cartridges
were for a starting pistol and did not fit the weapon on the site.
BBC,
27 May 2007
A man was hit on the head in
his house on Preston Docks by a suspected burglar who was seen
brandishing a gun. The offender tried to steal cash but left the
house empty-handed.
Evening Chronicle,
26 May 2007
Benito Bado has been given
an indefinite jail sentence following a doorstep gun attack at a house
in Tynemouth in December 2006 (see
Incidents). He tried to lure his
victim outside saying he wanted to settle a dispute between the two men
and then fired a loaded sawn-off shotgun as the other man tried to close
the door. The victim was hit in the calf. Bado was arrested
after fleeing the scene. He was found guilty of wounding with
intent and a firearms offence. He will serve at least four and a
half years before he can be considered for release.
Richmond & Twickenham Times,
25 May 2007
A robber held a silver
revolver to a security guard's throat and demanded a cash box whilst the
guard was delivering money to a bank in Isleworth, west London.
The robber jumped into a getaway car and escaped with thousands of
pounds.
Bury Free Press,
25 May 2007
Andrius Jankauskas was
spotted by an off duty police officer armed with an
air rifle in Thetford, Norfolk.
Armed police responded and had to use CS gas to subdue Jankauskas who
was drunk and aggressive. He pleaded guilty to affray and having a
firearm in a public place and was given and eight-month prison sentence,
suspended for 12 months. He was ordered to do 200 hours' unpaid
work. The weapon will be destroyed.
BBC,
25 May 2007 *
A rail commuter was in a
serious condition after being shot by robbers as he went to the aid of a
security guard at Rayleigh station in Essex. The victim was
shot in the chest with a handgun after intervening. The guard, one
of two, was attacked as she loaded a cash machine. The victim has
regained consciousness in hospital (BBC, 26 May 2007). A
man was being questioned by police in connection with the shooting (Independent,
29 May 2007). Four other arrests have been made in a series of
dawn raids (BBC, 15 May 2008). Three men, one of whom wrote
a book on Armed Robbery, are alleged to have plotted this and six other
robberies in Essex and are on trial charged with conspiring to rob and
conspiring to possess firearms with intent to rob. One of them
also denies attempted murder and possession of a firearm with intent to
rob (Telegraph, 24 February 2009). One man has been found
guilty of various charges but the two others accused face a retrial (see
May 2009 Incidents).
This is Cheshire,
24 May 2007
Neville Paul, 18, was found
guilty of attempted murder and possession of a section 1 firearm
following the attempted murder of a 17-year-old boy who was shot in a
park in Stretford in December 2006 (see
Incidents). Three others, two
aged 16 and one aged 15, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to cause actual
bodily harm. The victim has subsequently recovered after being
shot three times.
Mail,
24 May 2007
A group from Moss Side,
Manchester, calling themselves the Fallowfield Mandem posed in photos
with guns they used to intimidate and threaten kidnap victims. One
victim was hit in the back with a bullet after trying to escape in one
incident in February 2006. Twins Marvin and Michael Berkeley were
jailed over two firearms offences and several other offences and were
given an indeterminate sentence and two years and four months in jail,
respectively. Kane Snowdon and Marcus Smith were also given
indeterminate sentences, and Tyrone Patrick was sentenced to seven
years. All had pleaded guilty to offences including kidnap,
conspiracy to rob and assisting an offender. Lee Dilnutt pleaded
guilty to possession of a prohibited weapon and was given a minimum four
year sentence. Duane Edwards, who pleaded to a number of offences
including conspiracy to possess a firearm with intent to endanger life,
will be sentenced in July.
ic Coventry,
24 May 2007
A masked gunman demanded
cash from a shopkeeper in Atherstone and made off with about £100
from the till. The robber brandished a small black handgun.
BBC,
24 May 2007
Students and staff were
evacuated from a secondary school in Newbury, Berkshire, after
reports that a group of youths were heading into nearby woods with what
was thought to be a firearm.
BBC,
24 May 2007
A woman with a gun
barricaded herself into a house in Havant, Hampshire, before it
was set on fire. No one was injured but the house was
"substantially damaged". A woman was arrested.
BBC,
24 May 2007
Armed police arrested eight
people in two separate raids in North East England. One arrest was
made in Wallsend after a man allegedly made threats to kill.
Another man was arrested at a house in Bedlington after reports
that a
man had brandished a gun. Six others were held on suspicion of
assisting an offender. A BB gun
was recovered from the Bedlington house.
North-West Evening Mail,
23 May 2007
Vandals have caused hundreds
of pounds worth of damage in a street in Grange, Cumbria.
The attackers used either an airgun
or BB gun to smash windows at a
number of houses and flats.
BBC,
23 May 2007
A handgun was among items
seized by police when they raided seven homes in the Beeston, Belle Isle
and Wortley areas of Leeds. Five men and two women were
arrested over a credit card fraud.
BBC,
23 May 2007
Three
air pistols and an
air rifle were found when police raided
four addresses in Portishead, Somerset, and seized cash, a large quantity of
methadone, two hydroponic sets and a small quantity of cocaine.
Four men were arrested.
Argus (Brighton),
23 May 2007
Armed police followed a man
after he was seen sitting in a car in Hove with a silver pistol
in his hand. Armed response teams tracked the car which was
stopped in Crawley. The pistol was revealed to be a
BB gun and the driver was given advice
about carrying it in public.
Weston & Somerset Mercury,
22 May 2007 *
A man who lay in wait armed
with an air rifle for his father and
stepmother to return home in Weston in March 2007 pleaded guilty
to charges of grievous bodily harm, assault occasioning actual bodily
harm, assault by beating and two charges of criminal damage. The
gun belonged to Christopher Wall's father and was later found in a
neighbour's garden. He was jailed for two-and-a-half years (Weston
& Somerset Mercury, 10 September 2007).
Sun,
22 May 2007
A pensioner was carjacked at
gunpoint outside a church in Rushmere St Andrew, Suffolk. A
man put a pistol to her head, ordered her out of the car and drove off.
The car was found six miles away with an airgun
inside. A man has been arrested.
BBC,
22 May 2007
Two cars have had their
windscreens smashed in Flimby, Cumbria, by what are believed to
have been shots from an air rifle.
The incidents took place a week apart.
BBC,
22 May 2007
A man demanded money from a
woman working in a travel agency in Northampton whilst
threatening her with a gun. He escaped with cash. A man
later questioned in connection with the raid was released without
charge.
This is Lancashire,
21 May 2007
Matthew Gillett, 20, pulled
sharply in front of another motorist as they drove along a road in
Southport. At traffic lights the other motorist got out to
remonstrate with Gillett who picked up an
airgun and gestured with it. Gillett pleaded guilty to
possessing a firearm with intent to cause fear of violence. He was
sentenced to six months imprisonment, suspended for two years, and was
ordered to carry out 200 hours unpaid work.
Dunstable Today,
21 May 2007
Teams of armed police
officers descended on a supermarket car park in Dunstable and seized
an air rifle from a van. A man
was detained under the Mental Health Act. The car park was closed
for an hour. The police said they were concerned for the welfare
of the man in the van.
BBC,
21 May 2007
Anthony Gurney pleaded
guilty to GBH, robbery and possessing a firearm after a raid in which a
shopkeeper in Portslade, Sussex, was shot in the face in
September 2006 (see Incidents).
An attempted murder charge was ordered to lie on file. Stephen
Gurney and Henry Doyley both admitted robbery and possession of a
firearm. Charges of attempted murder and GBH were ordered to lie
on both men's files. The men will be sentenced in July.
BBC,
21 May 2007
Three men forced staff at a
shop in Breightmet, Greater Manchester, to open the till.
The gang were armed with a gun, knife and a bat and stole cash and
cigarettes before leaving as an alarm sounded.
BBC,
20 May 2007
Four youths have been
arrested on suspicion of possessing a firearm following reports that
shots were fired at a house party in the Old Swan area of
Liverpool.
BBC,
20 May 2007
A handgun was found at a
garage in Holloway, north London, after reports that shots were
fired in a street. There were no reports of anyone being injured
in the shooting.
Yorkshire Post,
19 May 2007
Armed officers from West
Yorkshire Police arrested two teenage women in a supermarket car park in
Brighouse after an off duty police officer from Greater
Manchester Police spotted the women and reported them for threatening
motorists when one of them pointed a gun at lorry drivers whilst driving
on the M62. The weapon was a toy gun
and the two women, both dressed in Wild West costumes, were returning
from a party. The police said they had a duty of care to the
public and to their officers to take firm action and that meant
responding with armed officers. The women were released a few
hours later after one of them had been cautioned.
Sunderland Echo,
19 May 2007
Following the arrest of two
men and the discovery of cocaine in a car stopped by police near
Houghton, County Durham, detectives in Derbyshire searched a
house where they found a gun and cannabis.
BBC,
19 May 2007
Two
replica guns were stolen in a burglary
in Beaumont Leys, Leicester. One of the guns looks like a
Colt 45 handgun in a holster and the other is a black starting pistol.
The police have warned that they are very realistic and could easily be
mistaken for the real thing.
ic SouthLondon,
18 May 2007
A 13-year-old schoolboy was
allowed to purchase a frighteningly realistic
Colt pistol replica for £40 from a shop in Caterham.
The test purchaser was sent by the local newspaper The Caterham
Advertiser. The purchase took only three minutes, and the only
safety advice given to the boy was not to shoot his friends in the face
with it. Surrey Police have warned that youngsters brandishing
these deadly-looking weapons are at risk of being shot. Their
Assistant Chief Constable Mark Rowley believes shops need to act more
responsibly and recognise their moral responsibility to cease the sale
of realistic looking BB guns. He hopes the Violent Crime Reduction
Act (2006) will become law this autumn.
BBC,
18 May 2007
Two men armed with a shotgun
threatened a man and his family at a house in Wyken, Coventry,
before stealing their car.
BBC,
18 May 2007
Shots were fired from an
imitation gun at a car in Boston, Lincolnshire. Pellets,
believed to have come from a BB gun,
were fired by one of two youths, aged between 16 and 18. One of
the pellets hit the car's windscreen but did not cause any damage.
Wirral Globe,
17 May 2007
Police are warning of the
dangers of imitation firearms after finding a cache of weapons at a
house in Leasowe. Thirteen weapons including
ball-bearing guns and a sword were
seized when police searched an address following reports of an alleged
assault. Four youths were arrested, three of whom (a 14-year-old
girl and two boys, aged 13 and 14) were bailed pending further
inquiries. Police say they "were delighted to have seized the
weapons and potentially prevented them being used on the streets".
Southern Daily Echo,
17 May 2007
A gunman attempted to rob a
shop in Southampton city centre. The man walked into the
shop and revealed a small handgun to one of the cashiers who pressed the
panic alarm. The man left the premises empty-handed and fled the
scene.
ic Coventry,
17 May 2007
A newsagent in Atherstone,
Warwickshire, was forced to hand over the contents of the till by a
masked gunman. The robber produced a black handgun and threatened
the shopkeeper before escaping with cash.
AOL News,
16 May 2007 *
A man has died after being
shot by police in Ealing, west London. Scotland Yard said
the man died in an "intelligence led" operation conducted by officers
from Operation Trident. No police officers were injured in the
incident which is being referred to the Independent Police Complaints
Commission. Scotland Yard has said that police were investigating
alleged illegal firearm transactions and that a loaded weapon was found
with the man (BBC, 16 May 2007). A inquest has heard how
Terry Nicholas pulled a gun and fired at undercover police who shot him
dead in the street (Ealing Gazette, 11 September 2009). The
jury has decided that he was lawfully killed (BBC, 2 October
2009).
Mirror<
