Three men have admitted to being involved in a shooting in Luton earlier this year, where gun shots were fired at a vehicle.
Lewis Gatehouse, 19, of Luton, Kendal Bizimana, 18, of Dunstable, and Samuel Martin, 18, of Luton, each pleaded guilty to attempted grievous bodily harm and other offences in connection with the incident in Wauluds Bank Drive, in the Marsh Farm area, on April 19, 2022.
Just before 5pm, police received reports of shots being fired at a Mercedes by men on pushbikes wearing black hoodies and face coverings.
This caused the Mercedes to collide with a Vauxhall Vectra, which was unrelated to the incident.
The driver of the Mercedes initially left the scene at the same time as the suspects but returned after police had arrived and told them that the reason for the collision was because his car had been shot at.
Not long after the incident occurred, police received a call from someone reporting that a man had approached him asking him to call a taxi. When the person refused, the man threw an object away which turned out to be a 9mm bullet casing.
A black pushbike was also recovered, and CCTV footage showed a man riding it before dumping it in a driveway close to where the bullet casing was found.
The suspect in the footage matched the description of the man who had asked for a taxi and he was identified as Kendal Bizimana.
Further enquiries were carried out with several taxi companies within the Luton area.
Results showed that a call was made to one company requesting a pick-up just after the incident had occurred and from the same location.
The booking was in the name of Lewis and the phone number was found to be linked to Lewis Gatehouse.
Further CCTV checks in the area captured the third suspect, who was identified as Samuel Martin, wearing very distinctive clothing. He was also seen with Bizimana after the suspects were dropped off in a taxi.
Just over a week later, officers from Bedfordshire Police’s Boson guns and gangs team carried out early morning search warrants and Gatehouse and Martin were both arrested and charged with attempted murder. Bizimana handed himself into a police station shortly after and was also charged with attempted murder.
During a hearing at Luton Crown Court on Wednesday, October 19, 2022, Gatehouse and Bizimana both pleaded guilty to attempted grievous bodily harm and possession of a firearm with intent to endanger life.
Martin pleaded guilty to attempted grievous bodily harm and possession of an offensive/bladed weapon.
Gatehouse also pleaded guilty to possession of a prohibited weapon and Class A and Class B drug offences in relation to a separate matter.
They will be sentenced at a later date.
Detective Sergeant Wil Taylor, from Boson, said: “I am very pleased that all three men have admitted to their part in what can only be described as a wild west style shooting in a residential area, which was witnessed by a number of people.
“With this incident taking place in broad daylight, these three individuals clearly had no regard for the safety of those around them, which is incredibly concerning.
“The force’s Boson team, who investigated this incident, is dedicated to tackling gang and gun criminality, and will continue to tackle those involved in this style of offending. We will work as hard as we can to stop people who use fear and intimidation in our communities.
“Gun crime has no place on the streets of our county and will not be tolerated. These types of incidents are extremely rare, but we take them incredibly seriously when they do happen.”
For more information about the work underway in Bedfordshire to tackle serious violence and exploitation visit https://www.beds.police.uk/police-forces/bedfordshire-police/areas/campaigns/campaigns/endchildexploitation/
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