"Teenager shot in suburban Coventry street"

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The 18-year-old victim was with friends when he suffered a gunshot wound



Witnesses are being sought after a teenager was shot in a Coventry street last night.

The 18-year-old man suffered a gunshot wound to his arm during the shooting in Pinley Fields, Stoke Aldermoor, on Wednesday night (September 2).

The victim was in the street with friends at around 10.30pm when he was shot.

He was taken to hospital but his injuries are not thought to be either life-threatening or life-changing.

The shooting saw a huge emergency services presence in Pinley Fields with ten police vehicles and several ambulances in attendance.

One resident told CoventryLive: “I’ve never seen so many police and ambulance in one place in all my life.”

Police are conducting house-to-house enquiries in the area, close to The Moorfield, following the shooting and have also stepped-up patrols in the area to reassure the local community.

A spokesman for West Midlands Police said: “We are investigating after an 18-year-old man suffered a gunshot wound to his arm in Pinley Fields, Coventry at about 10.40pm yesterday (Wednesday September 2).

“Our enquiries are in the early stages but it is understood the man was standing outside in the street with friends when he was injured.

“He is currently being treated in hospital but his injuries are not believed to be life-threatening or life-changing.

“House-to-house enquiries are being carried out as detectives work to establish exactly what happened.

“Officers are also carrying out patrols of the area to offer reassurance to residents.”

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Coventry teenager jailed for 25 years for shooting gang associate



A teenager has today been jailed for 25 years for shooting a gang associate at close range in a residential street in Coventry.

Pray Maphosa, 19, shot Bailey Atkinson with a sawn-off shotgun following an argument in Pinley Fields, Stoke Aldermoor - a street where Mr Atkinson and Maphosa's parents both lived - in September last year.

Judge Sylvia de Bertodano told Maphosa he was being given an extended sentence "in order to protect the public in future" after he was found guilty of attempted murder and possessing the shotgun with intent to endanger life.

At the sentencing hearing at Warwick Crown Court, Judge de Bertodano said: "The sentence in this must send a clear message that if you associate yourself with gangs armed with guns and you use them with the intention of killing people, you will go to prison for a very long time."

Maphosa was sentenced to 25 years behind bars for attempted murder and, because it is part of an extended sentence, he will have to serve at least two-thirds of that period in prison, and will then only be released when the Parole Board considers it safe to do so.

Once he is released, he will be on licence for the rest of the prison term and then for a further five years.

He was sentenced to 13 years for the firearm charge which will run concurrently.

Doctors were able to save Mr Atkinson's arm from being amputated following the blast, but the court heard how he had been left with permanent injuries as well as a significant psychological impact.

"Bailey Atkinson was severely wounded," Judge de Bertodano told Maphosa.

"You could have killed him, which was the verdict of the jury. It was your intention to do just that.

"Of course there's a background to this offence and one that is sadly familiar to the courts.

"A background of gang culture so prevalent in the Coventry area and a cause of so much local serious crime.

"You and Bailey Atkinson were both associates of what's known as the C2 gang.

"Only you and he know what led to this incident. Because his affiliation was so strong, even after suffering such serious injuries, he did not co-operate with police and did not give evidence in court.

"You understand that better than anyone. When stabbed in July 2019 you too refused to assist police and as a result no-one was charged with that offence.

"In turn, you were confident you could commit these offences without anyone telling police what had happened.

"As a mark of that confidence and invulnerability to prosecution, you committed these offences in public, in a residential street at 10pm in full view of other young men with Bailey Atkinson outside the house."

The judge told Maphosa his potentially deadly actions were aggravated by the fact his parents and siblings were home at the time and his refusal to stay away from crime and gangs after being found alternative accommodation in Worcester while under a supervision order.

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Gang jailed for more than 130 years after slaughtering Coventry man 'like lions on prey'



Killers who ambushed a much-loved Coventry man 'like lions on prey' and chopped at him with a 24cm knife have been jailed. Bailey Atkinson mumbled 'I am going to die, tell my mum I love her' as he bled to death following the horrific attack in the West Midlands.

Chilling CCTV captured the 21-year-old as he was chased to his death, unable to outrun his attackers in the final moments of his life, reports BirminghamLive. He was left for dead in a pool of his own blood, with a murder weapon lodged in his shoulder, following the vicious attack in January 2023.

Jurors heard that the violent onslaught was witnessed in part by staff at a nearby Asda. Staff rushed to his aid as the brutal attack came to an end, seconds after Mr Atkinson had wrenched the embedded blade from his body, Nottingham Crown Court heard.

A total of seven killers were locked up for his murder yesterday (Friday, May 24). Benjamin Wilkes, of Guild Avenue, Bloxwich, was given a life sentence and ordered to serve at least 18 years, and Patrick Brookes, of Hunter Crescent, Walsall, was given a life sentence and ordered to serve at least 20 years, said West Midlands Police.

Sonny Loveridge, of Irvine Road, Bloxwich, was given a life sentence and ordered to serve at least 23 years, and Ronan McCulloch, of Livingstone Road, Bloxwich, was handed a life sentence and ordered to serve at least 21 years at Nottingham Crown Court. Three other teenagers, who have not been named, were jailed for life and ordered to serve at least 19 years, reports BirminghamLive.



Police said Atkinson [pictured above] had moved to Walsall from Coventry two years before the violent attack to 'escape a gang lifestyle.' He had been out with a friend when he was killed on High Street in Walsall, on January 28, 2023.

Jurors heard that the pair were dropped off on High Street by a taxi driver as the killers arrived in a Toyota and a Seat Leon. CCTV captured both vehicles passing Mr Atkinson as he walked with his friend before the Seat Leon drove towards him causing the 21-year-old to run towards Poundland and The Entertainer.

One person got out of the Seat Leon while Mr Atkinson was standing outside Poundland. It was just moments later that the 21-year-old was recorded on the ground as his attackers surrounded him to 'lay blows', Nottingham Crown Court heard.

Jurors heard that the vicious gang rushed back to the two vehicles as Mr Atkinson was left seriously wounded on the ground. Both the Toyota and the Seat Leon were driven to grassland near Slater Street and Gough Street, where they were dumped and 'set alight.'

Relatives said it was 'sickening' to see the killers 'laughing and joking' during the ten-week trial at Nottingham Crown Court, reports BirminghamLive. Wilkes, Brookes, Loveridge and McCulloch showed 'no emotion' as CCTV captured the victim running for his life before the group cornered and attacked him 'like lions on prey.'

Mr Atkinson 'loved going out' and was said to be 'fiercely loyal to his friends.' Hundreds turned out to pay their respects to the 21-year-old at Canley Crematorium in March 2023.