teenage girl was shot in the street with two friends while clutching her baby son in her arms. Jessica Chrichlow, 18, collapsed to the ground alongside two sisters – named locally as Sammy, 17, and Alex, 19 – after being caught in the crossfire of a botched gangland attack, witnesses said. Police said it was “hugely fortunate” that the 11-month-old baby escaped injury. Detective Chief Inspector Mick Foote said: “It was a random, reckless act and we are fortunate we are not dealing with a fatal shooting here.” The three victims had been outside in John Fearon Walk, North Kensington, west London, enjoying balmy temperatures on Thursday evening when the attacker got off a bike and screamed “mother f****r” at the group, a neighbour, who did not want to be named, said. Police said the child may have been missed by inches as the bullet hit his mother. Mr Foote added: “I do not believe the girls were the intended targets. What’s particularly devastating is that the young girl was carrying a young child. This was totally unprovoked.” As a hunt was launched for several young men seen on bicycles on the west London housing estate on Thursday night, the officer said he was “working on the basis” that the shooting was gang-related. One neighbour said her 12-year-old daughter saw the shooting from her bedroom window. Jacky Cinesey said: “I have sent her to school in tears today. These girls were just outside enjoying the sunshine. It’s horrifying.” The girls had been enjoying the weather in a back garden when they began talking to a “large group” of boys outside, Mr Foote said. “It appears that a man on his own has gone towards the crowds and discharged a single shot from a shotgun,” he said. The gunman fled the scene and joined three other hooded males on bicycles, he added. Miss Chrichlow’s mother Isabel, who lives nearby, spoke only to confirm her daughter had been shot. Another local, Jenny Kantinda, 30, said she knew the three victims. “They were just sweet girls, we have had enough,” she said. Neighbour Leslie Arandi, 55, added: “The gangs are always cycling around here smoking drugs. I’m fed-up with it. Hopefully now the authorities will take notice.” Sammy has been discharged from hospital while the other two victims remain in a stable condition. The investigation is being led by Trident detectives, who deal with gang crime in the black community. Karen Buck, MP for Westminster North, expressed her concern as she visited the troubled Mozart Estate where the attack took place.
Gangster who bragged that he “ran Tottenham” after opening fire on his rivals with a machine gun in the street has had his appeal against conviction turned down by top judges. Former decorator Yusuf Arslan, now 21, was put behind bars indefinitely for public protection at Kingston Crown Court last September. Arslan belonged to the “Tottenham Boys” gang, which had a long-running feud with a rival Hackney gang, said Mr Justice Wilkie, sitting at London’s Appeal Court. He had opened fire with the sub-machine gun in Lansdowne Road, Tottenham, on September 30, 2009, in revenge for the shooting of a friend who ran a nearby shop. He had blocked his victim’s car in before letting off a volley of shots. A fragment of shell hit one of his targets’ left arm, but the majority of the shots hit their car’s body and windscreen. Arslan, of Oxford Close, Edmonton, was also prosecuted over an incident in December that year in which he and others were stopped in a car wearing body armour and carrying a revolver. One police officer said he heard Arslan brag he “ran Tottenham” and had access to more guns than the police. He was convicted of attempted murder, possessing guns and ammunition and was ordered to serve a minimum 10 years before being considered for parole. His lawyers challenged the convictions on Friday, claiming the identification evidence against him was flawed. But Mr Justice Wilkie, sitting with Lord Justice Pitchford and Mr Justice Holroyde, said the “sure identification” had been made by one of the men Arslan shot at. “This appeal against conviction is unarguable,” he concluded.
TOTTENHAM man who specialised in converting Olympic starting pistols into deadly firearms has been jailed for seven years. James Jones, 27, ran a gun conversion business out of a suitcase which was uncovered when officers raided his home last year and arrested him. The Collingwood Road resident is one of 37 people caught in the Boombox music store sting by Enfield Police, to catch gangsters trading guns, ammunition, weapons, and drugs. Detective Chief Inspector Paul Harwood, who ran the major undercover operation – codenamed Peyzac – said: “It is believed that James Jones had converted many more firearms than actually recovered. “He specialised in Olympic 38 starting pistols, which he converted to live firing firearms. This particular make of starting pistol is now illegal to possess in the UK.” Boombox, in Fore Street, was wired with hidden cameras and listening devices, and operated for more than a year with a functioning shop at the front and a backroom for criminals to trade in. Loaded guns, thousands of pounds of drugs, and ammunition were all brought into the shop, and sold to police. Among those jailed at Wood Green Crown Court in the Boombox case, Damien McGowan, 33, of Collingwood Road, Tottenham, received a ten-year prison term for conspiracy to supply nine firearms and ammunition. Kasheef Hardy, 25, of Mount View Court, Green Lanes, was also jailed for ten years for leading a group who sold a gun and ammunition to police in January last year. And Junior Homer, 21, of Bath Road, Edmonton, was jailed for ten-and-a-half-years for conspiracy to supply firearms, conspiracy to supply drugs, receiving stolen goods, and passing counterfeit currency. Judge Fraser Morrison, who oversaw all 37 cases, said on Friday at the sentencing of the final two defendants: “I need to say for the record, being involved in the movement of guns is very serious indeed. “The reason why it is viewed so seriously is the items can dispatch lethal force. There is a lot of violence in this country with guns when people suffer very severe consequences.”
Sky News can reveal how rioting gang members have stored away firearms ready for further disorder after the unrest in England last month. Our exclusive investigation allowed Metropolitan Police detectives to seize a stash of five guns. The weapons were bundled up in a bin store in Brockley, southeast London. Sky sources said they were concealed by gangs in anticipation of further clashes with officers. The information came to us from an anonymous individual who felt they could not deal directly with the police. :: Join Tom Parmenter for a Webchat at 12pm But the person did have genuine concerns about what might happen if the gangs were given another opportunity to use the weapons. Once we were told of the existence of this haul, we alerted detectives at the Metropolitan Police. Their priority, and our own, was to recover the firearms as quickly as possible in case they were either moved or even used in a shooting. SHELDON THOMAS, DIRECTOR OF TARGET AGAINST GANGS The location of the stash was revealed in a text sent to Sky on September 2. We do not know who sent it. It read: "Guns in yellow and orange jd bag at st peters court wickham road brockley london se4, open the bin area at entrance, on left hand side, this is a black metal door, you will find in bin the guns within the bag, describe, the bin area has st peters court written above in big writing on sign, remember left hand side bin, st peters court are a small block of flats." Within moments of the text messages arriving, we got back in touch with the Met Police detectives, who had a team of officers on standby to conduct the search. Communication with the police can take many forms and on this occasion Sky News happened to be the facilitator for the information to reach us. Detective Chief Inspector Theresa Breen, Met Police Within an hour and a half, more than 30 officers were swarming around the flats in Brockley. They had soon dragged the bin from behind the black door specified in the message. Moments later an officer found the orange and yellow bag. Forensics officers were then brought in to record the find. Armed police officers were the next to arrive. They had the experience and expertise to examine the guns and make them safe. Police discovered the guns in a bin The guns were wrapped in three plastic bags. The green inner bag contained five weapons which were carefully removed. Among them were two flare guns, two old pistols and one revolver. Detective Chief Inspector Theresa Breen told Sky News: "This is a hugely successful operation not just for the Metropolitan Police but for the community at large. "A member of the community has felt confident enough to use Sky News to come to us with information that there were weapons somewhere within this area. "I think that shows the community still has confidence in the police."
