Hucknall man jailed for shooting at house where a scared mum and children were inside

Nottingham Crown Court hears that the shooter, 21-year-old Tiron Desuza, of Magnolia Grove, had targeted the wrong house.

The victim was in her kitchen on Egerton Walk, St Ann’s, when she suddenly heard the noise.

Her children, who were upstairs, were woken up by the bangs and when they came downstairs they told her about the mess on the floor, with broken glass that had come from the rear door window.

When she pulled the curtain away she found the door had been shot at and called the police.

The shooting happened at around 11.30am on Saturday May 2 this year.

Desuza had modified a blank-firing pistol into a working firearm capable of discharging ammunition and used it to fire five shots into the glazed portion of the door.

He then rode off on a motorbike which was later caught on CCTV heading towards Hucknall and was successfully tracked by police.

Detectives swiftly launched an investigation and following extensive enquiries they arrested Desuza at his home.

Desuza went on to plead guilty to charges of possessing a firearm with intent to cause fear of violence, possession of a prohibited weapon and possession of cannabis with intent to supply.

He was locked up for six years and eight months when he appeared at the crown court for sentencing on Friday, July 9.

When officers arrested Desuza and searched his address they seized ball bearings, more than 100 blank rounds, some of which had been modified, the same type of bullets used in the shooting, some black powder used as a propellant and body armour.

Cannabis, drug paraphernalia and cash were also seized and evidence was found that Desuza was trying to make ammunition.

Detective Inspector Rachael North, of Nottinghamshire Police, led the investigation into the shooting.

She said: “Although offences like this are extremely rare, we will always treat them with the utmost seriousness and investigate them thoroughly.

“Desuza is a dangerous individual who fired at an innocent family’s home. Thankfully no-one inside was injured but it was a very traumatic experience for the family who were alarmed, scared and tearful as a result of what happened.

“The use of firearms on our streets is completely unacceptable and I’m pleased we have been able to bring Desuza for justice.

“I hope the sentence handed to him will bring some closure to the victims and reassures our communities that this level of criminality will not be tolerated.”