Gunman shot at woman who told him to 'pack it in'

Daily Record

4 days ago

The armed assailant was then whisked away on a stolen Kawasaki motorcycle before unleashing a further hail of bullets at a third home.
A woman bravely confronted a gunman, telling him to "pack it in" as he prepared to open fire on a house where a grandmother and her granddaughter were playing in the front garden.
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The armed attacker was then spirited away on a stolen Kawasaki motorcycle before firing more shots at a third property. Refuse collectors completing their rounds on the same street could only watch helplessly as the residents of this address retaliated with a shotgun.
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Emotional cries of "love you bro" echoed in court today as Tony Meadows, the "getaway rider", and Thomas Edwards, who concealed the bike following the shootings, were sentenced to prison.
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Liverpool Crown Court heard this afternoon, Friday, that the alleged shooter Owen Jamieson and the former defendant rode a stolen Kawasaki ZR900 motorbike to Paxton Road in Huyton and Shaw Lane in Prescot on the afternoon of 15 August 2023, discharging a self-loading pistol towards homes in both areas. However, no criminal charges have yet been brought against the latter in relation to these two incidents.
Simon Driver, prosecuting, said: "This was a targeted attack that bore the hallmarks of a carefully planned and coordinated criminal mission, albeit one that, despite their best efforts to avoid detection, left an evidential trail that led to Tony Meadows and Owen Jamieson.
"The stolen motorbike was provided by Thomas Edwards, who later permitted them to hide the motorbike in the back garden of the address he shared with his partner and children."
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One Paxton Road resident, Michelle Brown, had been washing the windows of an upstairs bedroom at the front of her house just before 1.30pm that day, reports the Liverpool Echo.
She remembered how youngsters had been playing in the street, with her elderly neighbour also tending to her garden alongside her young granddaughter outside, when she spotted the pillion passenger of a motorbike getting off the vehicle whilst wielding a firearm.
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When he "looked in the direction of the grandmother and granddaughter in the front garden", she started hammering on her windows to get their attention as she was "fearing for their safety" and yelled "pack it in".
Mr Driver went on: "The armed man, the crown allege Owen Jamieson, responded by aiming the gun at Michelle Brown and firing in her direction. She jumped for cover and, mercifully, was not injured. A bullet head fragment was subsequently recovered lodged in the window frame where she had stood immediately before the discharge."
The assailant then fired additional shots at the house where a grandmother and child were present before fleeing on a motorbike. Shortly after, binmen emptying blue bins on Shaw Lane noticed two vehicles "arriving at speed". One car mounted the pavement to manoeuvre around their lorry before its occupants dashed into a house.
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They were swiftly followed by the motorcycle, which appeared to be "seemingly in pursuit of the car". Once again, the passenger of the bike dismounted and brandished a firearm. He threatened the binmen before shooting at the open front door and windows of the property.
However, the gunman was seen taking "evasive action, as if someone was returning fire". Subsequent investigations revealed that "more than one firearm had been discharged" at the scene, suggesting that the occupants had "returned fire with a shotgun".
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Meadows, from Primrose Court in Huyton, was reported to have been "revving up the engine, ready for a speedy getaway" before his accomplice re-mounted the motorbike. The 21 year old reportedly "drove away so quickly" that he "temporarily lost control" of the vehicle before they escaped, with the men from the car "warning the bin men against calling the police" before also departing.
The stolen £10,000 bike was found at Edwards' former residence on Borough Road in St Helens, two days after it was nicked from a residential property in June 2022. No firearms were discovered during the investigation.
Meadows, who has two prior convictions for possession of class B drugs, was defended by Jamie Baxter. Speaking on his behalf, Mr Baxter stated: "He did not possess or handle the firearm and had no influence over the gunman. He was aware of the intended action, for it to be discharged, but his role has to be considered on the evidence.
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"My submission is that there was some degree of planning, rather than a significant degree of planning. I note that Owen Jamieson had his EMS tag on his leg, pinging around Liverpool. That suggests there was some planning, but it was not of the most intellectual level or most significant level."
Regarding the shot fired towards Ms Brown, Mr Baxter said: "It is a fact that the shooting arose in the context of the conspiracy, but he was not a part of it. That is the risk that people in Mr Meadows' position take when engaging in this sort of criminal activity. I do submit to what he agreed to do, and that is what he is to be sentenced for.
"He had no prior convictions at the time of the offending and, furthermore, has no relevant convictions as of today. He has had a difficult background in his early years and personal circumstances. Perhaps the most pertinent, poignant mitigation is his young age. He was 19 at the time of the commission of the offence, and is still only 21."
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Edwards, now residing at Dyer Court in Stranraer, Scotland, possesses a criminal history featuring entries for motoring matters, obstructing officers and public order breaches. The 27 year old's barrister Jason Smith informed the court: "He is to be sentenced for offences which took place some two years ago now. He left the Merseyside area and took a conscious, deliberate decision that, if he remained in the area, there was a temptation he would become involved in levels of criminality.
"He was arrested in January this year in Stranraer, and that is where he went to. He set up a new life with a new partner, doing gardening and landscaping work. He made the choice to start a new life.
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"The impact of these proceedings has been profound. He has lost that new life and will have to start again. His partner has stood by him, but it has been a difficult relationship to continue. One can only hope that the desires and expressions of rebuilding his life are genuine, and that he is able to move to Scotland and keep away from the criminal activity he was involved in on this occasion."
Meadows admitted conspiracy to possess a firearm and ammunition with intent to endanger life this week on what was the second day of his trial.
Appearing in the dock wearing a navy blue tracksuit, he was jailed for 10 years and two months.
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Edwards, who wore a grey Montirex t-shirt, pleaded guilty to perverting the course of justice and handling stolen goods and was handed 20 months behind bars.
One woman in the public gallery was heard to shout "love you bro" from the public gallery as the defendants were led to the cells.
Sentencing, Judge Robert Trevor-Jones told Meadows: "On the 15th of August, you and your accomplice, Owen Jamieson, took part in what was quite clearly a specifically targeted attack on the occupants of two properties. It happened in broad daylight.
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"No doubt, it was in furtherance of criminal activity. There was significant planning, in my judgement. The preparation involved you arranging for a 14-year-old individual to buy you a top-up for your mobile, while Jamieson took steps to obtain the firearm, ammunition and motorcycle used in the offence. It was you, Edwards, who supplied that motorcycle.
"I accept that your role can properly be described as secondary to the role played by Jamieson. You were, in essence, the getaway rider, but you were aware of the purpose of that journey.
"You were aware that Jamieson had that weapon and compatible ammunition, and that it was intended that the weapon was to be discharged at those two properties with the intention being to frighten. It is clear that there was a real prospect that life was to be endangered.
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"There could be no overall accuracy where and who was struck. It appears that the occupants of one property returned fire at you, which was clearly foreseeable, given the nature of the occupants and their involvement in criminal activity.
"Several shots were fired outside each property, including at Paxton Road, where an entirely innocent neighbour was shot at, an entirely terrifying experience. She was trying to alert a grandmother playing with her grandchild next door.
"You had no idea that was going to happen. The crown accept that it was an entirely impromptu act on behalf of Mr Jamieson. But you carried on to the second part of the conspiracy.
"She describes it as an unbelievable, shocking experience. That experience, two years on, has had an incalculable impact. It is the most telling indication of the type of collateral impact when people wield and discharge weapons in broad daylight in public. Quite apart from that, there is reference to children playing in the street. That is exactly the problem that this type of act provokes.
"There is a significant distinction between your role and that of Mr Jamieson. There are aggravating features. There were two incidents where a firearm was discharged, and it was done in furtherance of criminality."