DP, a young 20 year old man, alleged to be part of a Peckham Gang, pleaded guilty to a joint enterprise shooting arising out of gang retribution attack from an initial attack by a rival gang member. The Prosecution accepted guilty pleas to a lesser Firearms Offence of s.16(A) of the Firearms Act 1968 and agreed not to proceed with the s.16 offences and Conspiracy to Commit Grievous Bodily Harm with Intent. The shooting occurred in the early hours of 19th December 2021 in SE18 after one of the defendants had been assaulted earlier in the day. A few hours later, a loaded firearm was sourced and 3 men attended a premises to where they believed the assailant would be and ransacked the house, only to find he wasn’t there. The defendants who were commissioned by the first defendant to seek revenge, discharged a firearm at the house to cause fear and made off in a taxi. DP, was represented by In-House Counsel, Head of Advocacy, Ronnie Manek instructed by Will Russell (Partner) Supervising Solicitor in what was a shortened 4 week trial to a 4 day trial. At sentence, DP received a term of imprisonment for 5 years. Had he been convicted on the original indictment of the more serious charges, he could have received a sentence in the region of 15-18 years imprisonment.
