A teenage gang member who was posing with shotguns and handguns on Snapchat before police arrested him after a high speed pursuit has been jailed for 5 and a half years. He attached captions to the pictures with thinly veiled threats to rivals such as “they can keep their fakes”
Kie Connor from Salford was arrested following a pursuit this summer by police from the city’s taskforce to tackle organised crime. He was sentenced on Wednesday 1 December at Manchester Crown Court after admitting 10 offences including firearms and drug offences. Manchester police launched an investigation this summer led by detectives at Swinton CID that saw officers recover firearms, ammunition and drugs at addresses that were linked to the teenager. Investigators from GMP Salford Operation Naseby team began their inquiry into Connor after executing a firearms warrant at his address following intelligence that had been received. At the property, we found a Grand Power firearm loaded with live bullets in a locked shed in the back yard – as well as over 100 blank rounds, live round-coverting equipment, and cannabis.
Connor was not at the property at the time but officers continued to make enquiries based on the evidence they had found at his residence. This generation is obsessed with online acceptance and boasting via social media. The police can retrieve anything from apps like Snapchat, Whatsapp and sometimes Telegram as recent revelations showed the access authorities have to these networks.
He was eventually arrested three weeks later on Sunday 8 August when he was spotted in Eccles driving a stolen white BMW on cloned plates before being pursued for around 10 minutes by our Tactical Vehicle Intercept Unit. During the chase, Connor hit speeds of nearly 60mph – as well as driving on the pavement and on the road side of the road – before he was brought to a stop. As he ran from officers, the 19-year-old then threw a machete out of the car window before later discarding his car keys into the front garden of a nearby property. Connor surrendered after officers caught him up during the foot chase and he was taken to custody to be questioned on suspicion of a number of offences.
Shotgun raid
Further enquiries then linked him to an address on Fir Street, where a search of the backyard discovered a shotgun. Aimee Paterson, 24, who lives at the property was arrested and has now been sentenced to a 12-month community order after admitting possession of a shotgun without a certificate. Evidence seized from Connor’s phone was key to prove our case that he was in possession of the firearm recovered from his shed, and the drugs recovered from his address. The content of the handset also painted a picture of his involvement in serious and organised criminality, and linked him to the shotgun found in Paterson’s back yard.
Connor jailed
Connor pleaded guilty to all 10 offences he was charged with; including dangerous driving, handling stolen goods, possession of an offensive weapon, possession of a shotgun without a certificate, possession of a section 5 firearm, and possession of class B drugs.Sadly this is a common occurence and becoming more popular to post your cirminal activities to impress peers and also girls. Young men throwing their lives away for what? Clout is the new currency it seems on the street and the kids are desparate to obtain it. Lacking direction,purpose and role models the boredom of lockdown has dragged more young men into a life of crime.
