Four sentenced over Leeds gang shooting as police release CCTV of chase through streets of Gipton
Four men have been sentenced after chasing a rival gang member through the streets of Leeds.
Frightened members of the public called police when they saw the masked males, armed with a gun and machetes, pursuing the 17-year-old victim in Foundry Approach and Coldcotes Circus, in Gipton, at about 3pm on Sunday, July 7 last year.
During the chase the handgun was fired at the victim, but the bullet lodged in the barrel of the converted blank-firing pistol. The victim fled into a nearby convenience store and escaped out of the back door.
Officers were deployed to the scene and detained the four suspects in Brown Hill Terrace, Harehills, after a search of the wider area.
Detective Chief Inspector Michael Herbert, who led the investigation, said: “The CCTV footage shows this terrifying incident unfolding on a Sunday afternoon in a residential area where it was witnessed by a large number of people including young children.
“These four had armed themselves with a viable firearm and machetes and gone hunting for a rival gang member and clearly didn’t care about the consequences or the fear their actions brought to the local community.
“The incident prompted a swift response from district officers who detained the suspects during a search of the area and recovered the weapons.”
A 16-year-old male was found hiding in a garden with a machete tucked down his waistband. The three others, Kamahl Johnson, aged 19, Zane Gatewood, aged 18, and a 17-year-old male were located in the garden of another address on the street.
Gatewood jumped over a fence into the neighbouring garden but was then detained by officers. He was also found with a machete down his trousers. A further machete was found in a dog kennel in the garden where the three had been found.
A converted blank-firing handgun along with four rounds of 9mm ammunition was found in a black Louis Vuitton man-bag in the neighbouring garden. CCTV showed that the 17-year-old had the handgun at the time.
Enquiries revealed that the four were known members of an urban street gang and the youth they had targeted was linked to a rival gang. The group had walked three miles into an area associated with the rival gang apparently looking for any opposing gang member to target.
Detailed analysis of the clothing worn by the suspects seen on CCTV chasing the victim showed exact matches for the clothing the four were arrested wearing shortly afterwards, along with the weapons recovered.
DCI Herbert added: “A detailed and comprehensive investigation by specialist detectives from Leeds District Programme Precision built up a solid evidential picture of their involvement which has resulted in them being convicted and sentenced.
“Serious youth violence linked to urban street gangs remains a priority issue for the police and our partner agencies and we continue to work hard to target those involved and reduce the harm it presents to young people.
“We hope the successful outcome of this investigation will provide some reassurance to the community and demonstrate how seriously we will continue to treat any offences of this nature.”
The victim did not want to co-operate with the investigation and those arrested gave no comment when interviewed. The four were subsequently charged with offences including attempted murder, affray and possession of a firearm with intent to endanger life.
They pleaded not guilty to attempted murder but admitted the firearm offence and the affray. They were sentenced at Leeds Crown Court today.
Johnson, of Grange Crescent, Chapeltown, and Gatewood, of Pawson Street, Wakefield, were each sentenced to seven years and two months in custody; the 17-year-old was sentenced to seven years and five months and the 16-year-old was given a term of four years and nine months.