{"id":135626,"date":"2021-08-15T12:03:22","date_gmt":"2021-08-15T12:03:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/precoinnews.com\/?p=135626"},"modified":"2021-08-15T12:03:22","modified_gmt":"2021-08-15T12:03:22","slug":"plymouth-cops-return-guns-over-fears-of-being-sued-claims-ex-officer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/precoinnews.com\/world-news\/plymouth-cops-return-guns-over-fears-of-being-sued-claims-ex-officer\/","title":{"rendered":"Plymouth cops return guns over fears of being SUED, claims ex officer"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2>Plymouth cops return guns to their owners over fears of being SUED, claims ex-firearms officer after incel massacre &#8211; as police face calls to trawl social media of those applying for licence<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>EXCLUSIVE:\u00a0The ex-official said &#8216;nothing was ever done&#8217; about security concerns<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>They said police solicitor was worried about being sued over licence revocation<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>It comes as questions are asked of police over why Jake Davison had gun licence<\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong>Devon and Cornwall Police admitted last night it had not done web check on him<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Guns seized by Devon and Cornwall Police are returned to the owners amid fears of being sued, an ex-firearms licensing officer has claimed after the Plymouth shooting.<\/p>\n<p>The ex-official, who asked not to be named, said &#8216;nothing was ever done&#8217; about security concerns with armed residents.<\/p>\n<p>They claimed the police solicitor was worried about being sued over a licence revocation &#8211; which meant weapons were passed back to the holder.<\/p>\n<p>It comes as urgent questions are being asked of the force over why incel shooter Jake Davison had a gun licence and was given it back following an alleged assault.<\/p>\n<p>Devon and Cornwall Police admitted last night it did not do any web checks on the 22-year-old &#8211; who killed five people on Thursday &#8211; before handing back his shotgun.<\/p>\n<p>Chief Constable Shaun Sawyer said officers feared invading his privacy if they looked at his social media.<\/p>\n<p>But a former Met Police chief blasted the idea, saying police should trawl through people&#8217;s posts so &#8216;guns do not fall into the hands of dangerous people&#8217;.<\/p>\n<p>Former commissioner Lord Stevens said Davison&#8217;s disturbing videos on YouTube &#8216;should\u00a0have been taken into account when he applied for a shotgun licence&#8217;.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/1s\/2021\/08\/15\/11\/46694845-9895207-image-a-33_1629021914609.jpg\" height=\"427\" width=\"634\"><\/p>\n<p>The ex-official claimed &#8216;nothing was ever done&#8217; about security concerns with armed residents. Pictured: Chief Constable Shaun Sawyer talks with locals yesterday<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/1s\/2021\/08\/15\/11\/46631509-9895207-Jake_Davison_who_shot_multiple_people_and_then_himself_last_nigh-a-35_1629022057579.jpg\" height=\"357\" width=\"634\"><\/p>\n<p>It comes as urgent questions are being asked of the force over why incel shooter Jake Davison (pictured) had a gun licence and was given it back following an alleged assault<\/p>\n<p>Davison shot his mother Maxine Davison,\u00a051, before he went into the street and shot dead Sophie Martyn, three, and her father Lee Martyn, 43.<\/p>\n<p>In the 12-minute attack, Davison then killed Stephen Washington, 59, in a nearby park before shooting 66-year-old Kate Shepherd, who later died at Derriford Hospital.<\/p>\n<p>Davison also shot locals\u00a0Ben Parsonage, 33, and his mother Michelle, 53, but both are expected to make a full recovery.<\/p>\n<p>Since the attack urgent questions have been raised as to why Davison &#8211; who had autism, OCD, anger issues and depression &#8211; was allowed a shotgun licence.<\/p>\n<p>The former firearms licensing officer claimed Devon and Cornwall Police returned weapons to their owners because the force&#8217;s solicitor feared being sued.<\/p>\n<p>They told MailOnline: &#8216;Every gun I seized was eventually returned as the force solicitor feared being sued over a licence revocation.<\/p>\n<p>&#8216;I used to do at least five home visits everyday to check on security and raised concerns about lack of action regarding licensing breaches. Nothing was ever done.&#8217;<\/p>\n<p>Last night the force&#8217;s Chief Constable Sawyer admitted police did not go through Davison&#8217;s social media before returning his weapon.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/1s\/2021\/08\/15\/10\/46694001-9895123-image-a-32_1629018486961.jpg\" height=\"420\" width=\"634\"><\/p>\n<p>Luke Pollard (pictured with Priti Patel yesterday), Labour MP for Plymouth Sutton and Devonport, said there was a &#8216;sense of anger&#8217; among local residents at how the events of the atrocity unfolded<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/1s\/2021\/08\/15\/10\/46679277-9895123-A_teacher_who_knew_Plymouth_killer_Jake_Davison_expressed_his_fu-a-3_1629018110378.jpg\" height=\"639\" width=\"634\"><\/p>\n<p>A teacher who knew Plymouth killer Jake Davison expressed his fury and disbelief last night that his former pupil was allowed to own a shotgun \u2013 and revealed that he had been obsessed with firearms from a young age<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/1s\/2021\/08\/15\/09\/46631513-9895123-In_rambling_and_unsettling_films_made_in_the_weeks_before_his_ra-a-19_1629016863427.jpg\" height=\"354\" width=\"306\"><br \/>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/1s\/2021\/08\/15\/09\/46631511-9895123-In_rambling_and_unsettling_films_made_in_the_weeks_before_his_ra-a-21_1629016863494.jpg\" height=\"354\" width=\"306\"><\/p>\n<p>In rambling and unsettling films made in the weeks before his rampage, he described an obsession with The Terminator and repeatedly mentions to &#8216;incel&#8217; movement linked to mass shootings in the US<\/p>\n<p>Mr Sawyer claimed officers feared doing so would be an invasion of the killer&#8217;s privacy.<\/p>\n<p>He told the Sun: &#8216;We take and return\u00a0firearms on a not irregular basis when people have emotional crises or we receive reports from family members, then they can be returned.<\/p>\n<p>&#8216;What we don&#8217;t do, because firearms licensing is a lawful thing, is trawl the internet looking at people&#8217;s lives. That&#8217;s an invasion of privacy.&#8217;<\/p>\n<p>Davison was given his shotgun back last month after having it taken from him in December following an alleged assault in September.<\/p>\n<p>He used the weapon to kill the five people and himself on Thursday afternoon in a quiet road in Plymouth.<\/p>\n<p>Despite Mr Sawyer&#8217;s claims, former Met Police chief Lord Stevens said social media accounts should be checked before handing out gun licences.<\/p>\n<p>He said that it would be to ensure &#8216;guns do not fall into the hands of dangerous people&#8217;.<\/p>\n<p>He told Telegraph that Davison was &#8216;clearly a dangerous man&#8217;, adding: &#8216;The videos he made should have been taken into account when he applied for a shotgun licence.<\/p>\n<p>&#8216;There needs to be a trawling of online content for an in-depth assessment of who these people are and what they think.&#8217;<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/1s\/2021\/08\/15\/12\/46696321-9895207-image-a-47_1629026477881.jpg\" height=\"624\" width=\"634\"><\/p>\n<p>Despite Mr Sawyer&#8217;s claims, former Met Police chief Lord Stevens (pictured) said social media accounts should be checked before handing out gun licences<\/p>\n<p>Social media posts and interactions offered insight into the mind of a man who was interested in guns and America, while his social media usage suggests an obsession with the &#8216;incel&#8217; culture, meaning &#8216;involuntary celibate&#8217;.<\/p>\n<p>Special prayers are being said in Plymouth today as the city mourns the five people killed in the shooting spree.<\/p>\n<p>Tributes poured in for those shot dead by Davison, including his mother and a three-year-old girl, with flowers, cuddly toys and candles left near the scene in Keyham.<\/p>\n<p>Churches across Devon, including St Thomas&#8217; Church in Keyham, will use Sunday services to remember the victims, with a special prayer by the Bishop of Exeter.<\/p>\n<p>Father David Way, the vicar of St Thomas&#8217;, told BBC Breakfast: &#8216;Most importantly we will be praying for those who were killed.<\/p>\n<p>&#8216;But something which has been taxing my mind all the way through is I also have to pray for mercy for Jake on his soul.<\/p>\n<p>&#8216;As Christians, we have to love our enemies, and look with love on people who cause us harm.<\/p>\n<p>&#8216;So yes, the community is in my heart, the people who died innocently are in my heart and in my prayers, but also everybody involved in this situation, I have to make sure we keep in our prayers.&#8217;<\/p>\n<p>Devon and Cornwall Police has been approached for comment.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i.dailymail.co.uk\/1s\/2021\/08\/15\/11\/46695099-9895123-image-a-1_1629022954018.jpg\" height=\"431\" width=\"634\"><\/p>\n<p>Parish Priest David Way during a service at St Thomas Church in Plymouth, Devon, on Sunday<\/p>\n<p>Source: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailymail.co.uk\/news\/article-9895207\/Plymouth-cops-return-guns-fears-SUED-owners-claims-ex-firearms-officer.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Read Full Article<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Plymouth cops return guns to their owners<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":135625,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[23056],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v21.7 - 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