A Manchester gunman who blasted a man outside a barber shop in a drive-by shooting has finally been brought to justice – after police found DNA he left on a lollipop he was sucking at the time.
Rymel Downer, 25, has been jailed for 17 years for attempted murder after he was convicted of firing three shots, one of which hit his victim in the mouth.
The court heard that shortly after 3.30pm on May 25, 2013, police were called to Lloyd Street South, Fallowfield in Manchester, following reports of a shooting.
A 21-year-old man was standing outside a barber shop when three shots were fired from a vehicle, one of which struck him in the mouth.
The victim survived the gunshot wound and was able to get into a car and was driven by his cousin to hospital where he had emergency surgery. He was discharged two weeks later and has now made a ‘decent’ recovery from his injury.
Detective Chief Inspector Pete Marsh, of Greater Manchester Police’s Major Incident Team, said: “It is utterly miraculous that the young victim survived this attempt on his life.
“Everything about this incident points to a concerted effort to kill the victim and it is only by the tiniest of margins that he survived.”
The car that was used in the shooting, a BMW 330D, was found burnt out nearby but a lollipop was found near the car’s gearstick which contained Downer’s DNA.
A CD wallet left in the car also had Downer’s fingerprints all over it.
Detectives obtained further evidence against Downer, from Moss Side, Manchester, including mobile phone records, which showed him to be in the area at the time of the shooting.
They also recovered CCTV images from Knutsford Services showing the BMW on the day before the shooting.
The man on the footage was wearing clothes identical to those subsequently recovered from a house associated with Downer.
Downer was convicted after a trial at Manchester Crown Court.
Det Chief Insp Marsh said: “Downer was clearly confident of getting away with his crime, however officers quickly build up a wealth of evidence against him and today justice has been done.”
Story via Cavendish Press
Main image courtesy of ana ulin, with thanks.
