Thugs Armed with Shotguns and Axes Launch Violent Revenge Attack on City Computers, Leaving Two Injured
In a shocking incident of violence, a group of thugs armed with shotguns and axes targeted City Computers, leaving two people injured. The attack took place in Smethwick and resulted in shattered shopfront windows and chaos in the area. The perpetrators, Haider Shabir and Mohammed Uwais Latif, along with their getaway driver Mohammed Tayyib Wajid, planned and executed the attack with the intention of seeking revenge.
The assailants aggressively smashed the shopfront with their axes, causing glass to scatter across the pavement. They then fired four shots at close range towards the staff inside the store, causing injuries to two individuals. Meanwhile, Wajid strategically waited at a nearby barber shop, attempting to establish an alibi for himself.
New details have emerged about the sequence of events leading up to the shooting. Shabir was armed with a sawn-off shotgun, while Latif wielded an axe. Additionally, three others carried axes and a second sawn-off shotgun as they entered the premises on January 12, around noon. The daylight attack resulted in an employee suffering an arm injury and the shop owner sustaining a neck injury.
According to the prosecution, Wajid encouraged or assisted a violent disorder by providing transportation for his accomplices. He picked them up and drove them to a meeting point, ensuring they had the necessary weapons. Along the way, the stolen Ford Fiesta they were in made a stop to change its number plates. Wajid then engaged in conversations with an unknown male and Shabir, exchanging something before the vehicle was ultimately abandoned at an undisclosed location. He then deliberately went to a barber shop to establish an alibi while the attack unfolded.
After the shooting ended, Wajid collected some of the attackers before meeting with all the offenders at Latif’s home, where they discussed their actions. Notably, a video resembling a re-enactment of the shooting was found on Latif’s phone by the police. As a result of their crimes, Shabir, Latif, and Wajid were sentenced to imprisonment by Wolverhampton Crown Court.
Shabir, aged 20, from Walsall, received a sentence of 14 years for possession of a firearm with intent to endanger life. Latif, aged 23, also from Walsall, was handed a sentence of nine years and 10 months for the same charge. Wajid, aged 25, from Walsall, received a sentence of 21 months after pleading guilty to assisting an offender.
The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) emphasized the severity of the attack, stating that the assailants orchestrated a revenge plot against City Computers. The shop front was completely destroyed by the assailants wielding axes and four shots were fired at the staff at close range. While the injuries sustained were not life-threatening, a member of staff suffered harm to their arm, and the owner suffered a neck injury. The aftermath of the attack was captured in pictures, displaying the extent of the damage caused to the shop.
West Midlands Police are currently continuing their investigation and are actively searching for two additional individuals who are believed to have fled the country in connection with the incident. The police have urged anyone with information to come forward and contact them via Live Chat or by dialing 101, quoting the reference number 20/80288/23.
This shocking incident serves as a grim reminder of the extent some individuals are willing to go to seek revenge, causing harm to innocent people and wreaking havoc in the process. It highlights the importance of ongoing efforts to maintain law and order and ensure the safety of the public in our communities.
