Angry neighbours have said they fear gang violence and drugs are getting out of control in their town. Locals in a street in Oldham, Greater Manchester, reacted after a shocking early hours alleged attack in Prince Edward Avenue in the Clarksfield area of the town.
Footage live-streamed on Snapchat appeared to show a man allegedly firing rounds through a window and kicking at the door of a house in the street in the early hours on May 7.
Shocked neighbours told the Manchester Evening News they thought the bangs were caused by fireworks. Nobody was hurt in the attack.
Ward councillor Nadeem Iqbal, 45, said people were screaming in the street and running about. He told the Sun: “It was a shocking moment… The only saving grace from this is that it was a targeted and isolated incident. This is not normal for this street.”
Mr Iqbal praised the police’s quick response, adding a lot of people had been upset and scared. The ward councillor said Oldham has seen a few gun crime incidents in recent weeks and it needed to be clamped down on.
A mum, who didn’t want to be named, told the same publication she felt “absolutely distraught”. She said: “It is so scary to think people have come into our street carrying weapons.”
Greater Manchester Police (GMP) said it was called at 1am on May 7 to reports of a firearms discharge at a house in Prince Edward Avenue.
Stefan Ion, 36, of Washwood Heath Road, Birmingham, has been charged with possession of a firearm with intent to cause fear of violence and affray. A man and a woman have been bailed.
Det Insp Clare Harrison from GMP’s Oldham district said the force is committed to taking firearms off the streets.
She told residents: “You can be confident that if you report any information relating to suspected possession or offences, we will take immediate action as we continue to ensure Oldham is a safe place to live and work.
“We have specialist officers across the force who are proactively tackling firearms enabled criminality, and your local neighbourhood officers will continue to be in the area for community reassurance.”
Think tank Onward recently identified Oldham as a crime hotspot, with a rate above the 2021 national average of 85.5 crimes per 1,000 people. The town recorded 123 crimes for every thousand people, according to the report.
Offences involving firearms increased by nine percent across the country between December 2022 and December last year. They rose from 5,850 to 6,367, according to the Office of National Statistics. Devon and Cornwall Police is not included in the figures.
