Four jailed for shooting man in the street

Four men have been jailed for chasing down a man in the street and shooting him in the back.

Their 45-year-old victim needed hospital treatment, but survived the attack, which took place in Wolverhampton in September 2024.

The four defendants, Richard Beckles, 44, from Telford, Cleon Johnson, 39, from Walsall, Constantine Campbell, 52 from Tipton and Khyle Gayle, 31, from Birmingham, were all convicted of attempted murder and possessing a firearm with intent to endanger life.

Beckles, Johnson and Gayle were all sentenced at Wolverhampton Crown Court on Thursday to 30 years in prison and Campbell to 27 years.

West Midlands Police said at about 23:00 on 18 September 2024, the victim's car had its tyres slashed outside a pub on Harp Street.

As he left the pub he was then chased by group of men, who shot him in Minerva Street.

The men then drove off in a black Mercedes, which had followed the chasing group.

The police found two of the men had travelled over from Birmingham and met up with the other two at an industrial estate in Bilston, before carrying out the attack.

The four were linked to each other using phone evidence, which found numerous calls were made between them.

Det Insp Francis Nock said: "Although their intended target survived this attack, shots being fired at someone in the street is a terrifying prospect for most people and we will not tolerate this in our cities or towns."

He said the men tried to cover their tracks by using a number of vehicles and pick-up points, but the police were able to link their activity.

A fifth man, Michael Soledolu, was found not guilty of the charges.

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