Gun Incident Summary - August 2008

The incidents recorded in August have provided a stark reminder that generalisations about gun crime being the preserve of "criminals with illegally-held weapons" do not provide an accurate description of all the problems created by guns in Britain. Gang- and drug-related shootings continue to be very serious issues, and there were worrying spates of shootings in Birmingham and Liverpool, although Merseyside police demonstrated swift action with the arrest of 31 people for gun-related offences in August. However, it is some of the other incidents that GCN wishes to highlight in order to dispel the view that gun users can be divided into two mutually-exclusive categories, those who use illegal weapons and are responsible for all firearms offences and those who obtain their guns legally and whose weapons will never be used inappropriately.

A father used his airgun, presumably bought legally, for target shooting in his back garden in front of his young children, and left the gun briefly. The result was the death of his 18-month-old son, apparently shot by his 5-year-old daughter who had picked up the gun.

There were many other incidents in August in which victims were hit with pellets fired from air weapons, and there can be little doubt that many of these weapons would have been obtained legally, making it all too easy for them to be used in a dangerous and irresponsible manner.

A husband and father, the owner of a legally-held rifle and regular attendee at the local clay pigeon shooting club, is believed by the police to have been responsible for shooting dead his wife and daughter before killing himself.

The majority of women fatally shot in Britain in recent years have known the gunman well, while the man responsible has had easy access to the murder weapon, often through his or a friend's legal ownership of the gun. In many instances the perpetrator has then shot himself. This would appear to so in this case.

A firearms dealer, the chair of the Registered Firearms Dealers Committee, sold ninety replica Mac-10 machine pistols to a man who was able to convert them into lethal weapons. The buyer who set up a gun factory, has now been convicted and given a life sentence, but the guns he was able to convert have already been linked to at least 50 shootings, eight of which resulted in fatalities.

This case has highlighted a very grey area between legal gun dealing and the arming of criminals.

A gamekeeper, who died in custody, had been jailed for two years for keeping prohibited weapons at his home.

We often hear that those given licences for firearms and shotguns can always be trusted to be law-abiding, yet this is the latest of a number of cases in which gun owners have broken the rules to accumulate weaponry and ammunition for which they have no permission. A casual attitude towards licensing laws can easily lead to guns falling into inappropriate hands.

A clay pigeon shooter who has competed for Great Britain was convicted of possessing a shotgun with intent to cause fear of violence after he fired the weapon to scare a driver who had inadvertently called at his property: he was fined £2500 and has been told he risks having his shotgun licence revoked.

Whilst the incident was not as serious as those listed above it demonstrates further how some owners of licensed guns choose to use them dangerously, putting innocent members of the public at risk.

There was a long list of incidents and court cases involving the misuse of airguns and imitation guns by youths and children, one as young as eight who damaged the sight of a young girl.

Although laws controlling the sale of these guns have recently been tightened and it is also an offence to carry them in public, it is likely that many of those involved in these incidents were purchased legally by parents who have subsequently failed to take responsibility for their children's use of the weapons.

We highlight these incidents because it is GCN's view that too many firearms policies are still framed by the view that so long as a gun is traded and owned legally it will always be far removed from the tragic and frightening consequences of gun misuse. Clearly that is not so, and appropriate policies will only be fully implemented when the full spectrum of gun use and abuse is taken into account.

Gun Deaths - There were fourteen apparent fatalities from gunshot wounds in August.
Police believe that a man shot and killed his wife and daughter before killing himself with a legally-owned rifle at their house in Shropshire. The circumstances are still being investigated.
An 18-month-old boy from Washwood Heath (Birmingham) has died a few days after being shot in the head with his father's airgun, apparently by his sister.
There were seven other fatal gun attacks reported during August:
- Birmingham - a man was gunned down in the Newtown area in an apparent gang-related murder, and a man shot in Ladywood Middleway died four weeks after the incident
- Bradford - a man was shot dead outside a nightclub - a man has been charged with murder
- Hull - a drug dealer was shot and killed at a flat in the east of the city
- London - two innocent bystanders were the victims of fatal shootings, one outside a pub in Forest Gate (east London), the other at a supermarket in Walworth (south London) (the victim was aged 18, and a 19-year-old has been charged with murder): another man was the victim of a second fatal shooting in Walworth
There were three shooting deaths in which there were apparently no suspicious circumstances:
- A farmer was found shot dead at his home in Hutton Buscel (north Yorkshire)
- Another man was found dead with shotgun wounds in his car near Ellastone (Staffordshire)
- A man was found dead with shotgun wounds in Stoke Hill (Wiltshire)

Gun Injuries - Other shooting incidents that resulted in injury occurred in:
- Birmingham - a man was shot in the Handsworth area, two people (a man and a woman) were injured in a shooting in Digbeth and a man was hit in the arm in Small Heath
- Bradford - a man was in hospital with serious injuries after a shooting in Thornbury
- Bristol - an 18-year-old was dumped outside a Bristol hospital with suspected gunshot wounds
- London - a security guard was injured during an attempted robbery on a cash van in Enfield (north London), a man was shot in the face in Beckton (east London) and a man needed hospital treatment after being shot in Peckham (south-east London)
- Merseyside - there were shootings, some of them reported to have been targeted, in Knowsley, Dingle (the victim was a woman), Stockbridge Village, Kirkby and Toxteth
In addition to the above there were a significant number of incidents in which victims were wounded by shots from Airguns and Imitations Guns (see below).

Armed Hold-Ups and Assaults - There were robberies and attempted robberies by men apparently armed with guns on stores in Trafford (Greater Manchester) (three shops were targeted by the same lone gunman), Northampton, Leyland (Lancashire), Swalwell (Tyneside), Port Talbot (South Wales), Herne Bay (Kent), Birkenhead (an imitation gun was involved and two men and a teenage boy have been arrested) and Chantry (Suffolk). Three men raided a jewellers in Newcastle upon Tyne. A 10-year-old attempted to rob an opticians in Thornbury (Bristol) whilst armed with a BB gun (see below).
Two banks in Sussex were raided (in Henfield and Seaford - a man and a woman were arrested after the latter robbery) and a man stole a cash box from a bank in Blackpool. A security guard was injured during an attempted robbery in Enfield (north London) (see above).
More betting shops were targeted in August, four in Glasgow (two separate robberies in the west end, one on the south side and one in Govanhill) as well as premises in Oldham (where a pensioner was hit with the butt of a gun), York and Gateshead.
A filling station manager was robbed at gunpoint in Southampton.
A ball-bearing gun was fired during an attempted robbery on a takeaway in Motherwell (Lanarkshire) (see below).
Two people in a flat in Neath (South Wales) were threatened with a gun and a knife during a robbery. A landlord and a barwoman were held up at gunpoint as two men stole around £3,000 from a pub in Torquay (Devon).
A taxi driver was robbed of around £180 by three youths who attacked him in Preston. A man was robbed of over £10,000 in burger van takings as he parked outside his home in Rumney (Cardiff).
A couple in a car park in Moreton (The Wirral) were forced to hand over a wallet and a handbag at gunpoint. Another couple walking in a park in Derby were robbed by a man apparently armed with a handgun.

Other Incidents - On Merseyside, shots were fired through the windows of a home in Huyton and a ground-floor flat in Norris Green, and a house in Croxteth Park was damaged in a shooting incident. A shot was fired through a kitchen window of a house in Radford (Nottingham).
A number of vehicles travelling along the A47 near Norwich were hit by a gunman. A man was arrested in Rugby after the windows of a parked car in Rugby (Warwickshire) were smashed by a shotgun.
A pedestrian had a long-barrelled firearm pointed at him by a woman passenger after he was in collision with a car in Middleton (West Yorkshire).
A man posing as a customer in a car accessory shop in Halliwell (Lancashire) pulled the trigger of a gun but no bullets were fired.
Police sealed off an area around a block of flats in Milton (Glasgow) after two men were seen with firearms - no shots were fired. Armed police surrounded a flat in Fishponds (Bristol) after reports that a gunman had sexually assaulted a woman - a man was arrested.

Gun Finds and Thefts - A 13-year-old was arrested after a 9mm Baikal pistol, two silencers and a bag of 9mm cartridges were found in a house in New Cross (south London).
A man was charged with firearms offences after 300 bullets were found in a bag at a house in Digmoor (Lancashire). A cache of bullets for use in handguns was found in cars in a car park in Hunts Cross (Merseyside) where the ammunition was to be sold. Six guns were recovered by police from a car in central Manchester after a rifle was spotted by CCTV.
A number of firearms and hand grenades were seized when police called at a house in St Agnes (Cornwall).
An SA80 rifle found at a house in Alvechurch (Worcestershire), where the body of a murder victim was discovered, was one of two automatic rifles that went missing from Army barracks in London.
Firearms were recovered in a number of police raids in which drugs were also found:
- In Greater Manchester a firearm, rounds of ammunition and a large quantity of drugs were discovered at a home in Kirkholt (a man has been charged), and six guns were seized together with ammunition, a crossbow and drugs in Longsight
- Two men have been arrested, one in Arbroath and the other in Liverpool, by police investigating the smuggling of firearms and drugs in Lancashire
- In Honley (West Yorkshire) three people, including two teenagers, were arrested after police found a sawn-off shotgun, ammunition and cocaine
A slaughtering pistol was stolen during a burglary in Sutton Weaver (Cheshire).

Airguns - The tragic death of an 18-month-old boy, shot in the garden of his house in Washwood Heath area of Birmingham, was yet another reminder that air weapons can be lethal. Although the outcomes were not as tragic, there were many other incidents in August with potentially serious consequences in which victims were shot with airguns:
- Two boys were shot in Wisbech (Cambridgeshire) in separate incidents: a 15-year-old was shot in the top of his leg whilst he was out walking, and a 9-year-old was hit in the arm after climbing a tree in his own back garden
- A nine-year-old boy was shot in the eye with an airgun in Bridgeton (Glasgow)
- A woman underwent surgery to her hand after being shot with an airgun in Sighthill (Glasgow)
- A boy, aged 10, was shot in the head whilst he was playing in a field in St Helens (Merseyside)
- A woman from Lowestoft (Suffolk) was struck in the head with an airgun pellet
- A man from Broseley (Shropshire) was hit by a pellet in his garden
- A woman was shot in the back in a shopping street in Llandrindod Wells (Powys) - a man was being held by police
- A man had to undergo treatment in hospital after being hit by an airgun pellet in Middleton (Leeds)
- A cyclist was hit in the face with an airgun pellet in Eaton (Norfolk) and required hospital treatment - four people have been arrested
- A garage worker in Houghton (County Durham) was injured by a drive-by gunman armed with an air rifle
- A man was injured on the hand after an airgun was fired at a group outside a church in Braunstone (Leicester)
A carer and the pensioner she looks after have had their home in Canvey (Essex) attacked for a third time - a kitchen window was damaged, probably by an airgun or BB gun. A minibus used by elderly and disabled people has been damaged in an air rifle attack in New Elgin (Moray). A car and homes were shot at with an air rifle in Clitheroe (Lancashire) and an airgun or pellet gun was fired at windows of a home in Abington (Northampton). A hairdressers in Scarborough (North Yorkshire) is thought to have been targeted by yobs firing air rifles.
A bus travelling on the Trowse by-pass (Norfolk) may have been shot at with an airgun.
Two youths suspected of firing an airgun from a car being driven around Minsterley and Pontesbury (Shropshire) were arrested on firearms offences after being involved in a three-car smash.
Armed youths carrying an air rifle were spotted walking along a disused railway line near Market Harborough (Leicestershire).
A community council in Fairlie (Ayrshire) heard that there had been one charge of reckless conduct with a firearm in the village involving an airgun offence.

Imitation Guns - This month's incidents showed that very young children armed with imitation guns have been involved in serious gun incidents which happened in a month when reports were released about the worrying number of imitation guns found by police called to incidents in schools in both Greater Manchester and Islington (North London).
An eight-year-old boy was being questioned by police after an 11-year-old girl was shot with a ball-bearing gun in Blyth (Northumberland) - she will need surgery and was lucky not to be permanently blinded. A 10-year-old with a BB gun was arrested after he demanded money in an opticians in Thornbury (Bristol) - he was given a reprimand.
A ball-bearing gun was fired during an attempted robbery on a takeaway in Motherwell (Lanarkshire). One of three people arrested on suspicion of robbery at a shop in Birkenhead (Wirral) was armed with an imitation handgun.
Two women were threatened with a gun, reported by the police to have been a BB gun, by two men who burst into a house in Seaham (County Durham).
Two men have been charged with possession of an imitation firearm with intent to cause fear of violence, one after someone was thought to be carrying a handgun in Shirley (Southampton) and the other after an incident in the centre of Colchester (Essex). A ball-bearing gun was pointed at police officers during an incident in Barnstaple (Devon).
More than 70 ball-bearing shots were fired at a business premises in West Reading (Berkshire).
Police recovered BB guns from the home of two teenagers in Derby who posted images of themselves with the weapons on the internet.

Incidents Involving Animals - Nothing seems to be stemming the tide of brutal airgun attacks on cats reported each month from across the country. In August there were reports from Bristol (two incidents in four months in Kingswood), Buckinghamshire, Cambridgeshire, Cornwall (six incidents reported in five months in St Austell), Devon, Flintshire, Herefordshire, Lancashire (three separate incidents, two in St Michael's), Lincolnshire, Sussex and Worcestershire (two separate incidents)).
Four dogs and three horses were all shot dead at the house in Maesbrook (Shropshire) where three human bodes have been found. Dogs were also shot in Allensmore (Herefordshire) (the dog had to be put to sleep after being shot with an airgun), St Michael's (Lancashire) (injured with an airgun pellet) and Navestock (Essex) (two dogs killed with hollow tipped bullets used for hunting). Eight horses were shot with air rifles and slashed in an attack on an equine centre in Lincolnshire. A ferret found in Worcester had suffered an airgun wound.
A court heard how a gamekeeper from Shropshire was shooting buzzards with a shotgun to protect the pheasants he was looking after: he pleaded guilty nine charges involving the killing of buzzards and badgers.

Convictions - A number of murder cases were concluded during August:
- A teenager was jailed for life for murdering a student in Stockwell (south London) with a converted Mac 10 sub-machine gun
- Two brothers, small time drug dealers, were convicted of the murder of three men and the attempted murder of two women following a multiple shooting in Bishop's Stortford
- A man who killed a fellow drug dealer with a shotgun on Chislehurst Common, south-east London, has been found guilty of murder
- A man has pleaded guilty to the murder of a man and the attempted murder of a woman in a double shooting in Blyth (Northumberland)
- Barry George was cleared of the fatal shooting in 1999 of TV presenter Jill Dando: he had spent eight years in prison
Two men have been jailed for eight and seven years for firearms offences after a police officer was shot in Peckham (south London).
After two trials eight men have been jailed for supplying guns that were used in crimes. One man was jailed for a minimum of 11 years after being found guilty of setting up a gun factory at Three Mile Cross (Berkshire) to convert replica Mac 10 machine pistols to fire live ammunition: the guns have been involved in at least fifty shooting incidents including eight murders. Following the conclusion of another case seven men were jailed for up to 20 years for their parts in a scheme to import and convert blank-firing Baikal self-loading gas handguns which were then sold as past of "assassin kits": the weapons were used in crimes in Manchester, Liverpool, Sheffield, Leeds, Bradford and Scotland.
Three teenagers face jail sentences after an incident in which a shotgun was fired in a busy Leicester street during the afternoon. A man from Lincoln has admitted firing a loaded shotgun in the air in view of his neighbours and will be sentenced later.
Two men who conducted a seven month "reign of terror" in and around Cambridge have been found guilty of a catalogue of robbery, conspiracy and firearms charges: they held up a number of shops and post offices.
An 18-year-old has been sentenced to six years' detention after admitting possessing a shotgun with intent: he pointed the loaded weapon at police when they arrested him at an address in Handsworth (Birmingham). A 17-year-old found with a loaded pistol tucked into his trousers in Derby has been sentenced to four years. A man has been jailed for seven years after a machine pistol and ammunition were discovered in his bag in a hotel room in Almondsbury near Bristol.
A gamekeeper was jailed for two years for keeping prohibited weapons at his home in Alkmonton (Derbyshire): he died in custody shortly afterwards.
A member of a gang of four who kidnapped a car salesman from Darlington and stole a car, threatening the victim with a Taser and a gun, has been jailed for nine-and-a-half years.
A man on weekend leave from prison robbed a petrol station in Hawick, telling the cashier that he had a gun - he has admitted the offence.
A clay pigeon shooter who has competed for Great Britain was convicted of possessing a shotgun with intent to cause fear of violence after he fired the weapon to scare a drive in Lighthorne (Warwickshire): he was fined £2500 and has been told he risks having his shotgun licence revoked.
A woman has been given a conditional discharge for 12 months after failing to comply with a shotgun certificate condition after moving to Abbotskerswell (Devon).

Airguns (Court Cases) - One of two brothers jailed after attacking a man in Blantyre (Lanarkshire) fired an air rifle at their victim: he has been jailed for two years and three months.
A teenager who admitted shooting a 10-year-old boy with an air pistol in Walney (Cumbria) has been given a 12-month referral order after pleading guilty to assault occasioning actual bodily harm and possession of an air rifle.
A man who shot and injured a Doncaster teenager with a gas-powered airgun has had his sentence reduced from nine months to four, angering the victim's mother
A man who injured a friend when he fired an air rifle down the stairs of his house in Chippenham (Wiltshire) was given a 24 week suspended sentence - the victim has a pellet lodged in his skin
A man who was heard threatening to kill someone after an argument over drugs outside a nightclub in Pontypridd (South Wales) admitted possession of a loaded air weapon and a drugs offence and was jailed for two years.
Two 16-year-olds who took part in a raid at a house in Ipswich during which an air pistol was fired have been given detention and training orders - another teenager received one earlier in the year.
A former Tory councillor, who threatened and intimidated a woman from Ullesthorpe (Leicestershire) who wanted to stop seeing him, has been given a 12-month suspended prison sentence: he held up an airgun and told her he would "deck her if she was a man". A man who threatened a couple in a street in Peasedown St John (Somerset) whilst armed with an air rifle has been jailed for two-and-a-half years.
A man was jailed for three months for carrying a potentially lethal air pistol in public in Ferndale (South Wales).
A father from Egremont (Cumbria) who bought an air pistol for his 12-year-old son has been fined £100 as he was banned from owning a firearm for life but was technically the gun's owner.

Imitation Guns (Court Cases) - A teenager has been sentenced to four months in a youth detention centre after pleading guilty to a number of charges - he fired a BB gun at a female member of staff at a supermarket in Biggleswade (Bedfordshire).
A man who threatened two members of staff at a Grimsby bookmakers with an imitation handgun has been jailed for six years and nine months (he also admitted breaching a suspended prison sentence).
A man has been given a six-and-a-half year sentence after admitting breaking into a house in Moortown (Leeds) armed with a fake gun (a cigarette lighter shaped like a gun) and stealing cash, knives and jewellery: the victims were tied up and one was stabbed.
A man from Crick (Northamptonshire) who threatened his partner's daughter and her friends with a blank-firing pistol has pleaded guilty to possessing a firearm with intent to cause fear of violence.
A man who pointed a toy gun out of a car window on the outskirts of Perth has been fined £500.