Four men were arrested in Bradford on Tuesday on suspicion of attempted murder in relation to a shooting incident which took place in the Beeston area of Leeds at about 2pm on Saturday 28 October
Disturbing footage showing the arrest of the four men has been circulating on social media since yesterday. The footage shows, several officers in the middle of Shearbridge Road and a number of police cars blocking off traffic as the arrests took place.
The incident was said to have taken place at around 3pm Tuesday and was as a result of armed officers stopping a vehicle.
Two other men were also arrested in Leeds city centre by armed officers Tuesday afternoon and another man was arrested in an armed operation at an address in Whinmoor in the early hours of this morning resulting in a total of six arrests.
The victim, a 22-year-old man, had been sitting in his BMW car parked on Back Maud Avenue, at the junction with Maud Place, when a black Volkswagen Passat pulled up and a shotgun was fired at the BMW damaging the bonnet and windscreen.
The victim, who was not injured, repeatedly rammed the Passat and drove off from the scene. The Passat was later found burnt out in Cardinal Square.
Detectives are looking into whether the incident on Saturday is linked to a shooting in Maud Avenue, Beeston, on Wednesday, October 11, in which two men received minor injuries when a shotgun was fired at the car they were in.
Detective Chief Inspector Jaz Khan, of West Yorkshire Police’s Firearms Prevent Team, said: “Both of these incidents could have had far more serious consequences and are being treated as attempted murders. We believe these have been targeted attacks linked to an ongoing dispute.
“We have a team of specialist detectives, supported by firearms officers, who are continuing to carry out enquiries into these incidents and our investigations are progressing positively with the arrests we have seen today.
“We would however still like to hear from anyone with any information that could assist the investigation, particularly if they have any knowledge of the wider circumstances surrounding these incidents. We would remind people that the independent charity Crimestoppers can be used as a secure and anonymous way of passing on information.
“The criminal use of firearms on our streets is something we will always treat very seriously and we will do everything we can to identify those responsible and will also take appropriate action to prevent any further incidents.
“Officers from the local neighbourhood team are aware and will be conducting increased patrols of the area to reassure the community and will be distributing leaflets to homes in the area to encourage people to contact us with information.”
Anyone with any information is asked to contact police via 101 quoting crime number 13170501767 or call the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.
