A LITTLE Hulton man has been jailed for having with him in a car the gun used to shoot and injure a boy and his mum on their doorstep last year.

At Manchester Crown Court yesterday, Christopher Hall, 46, of Old Wells Close, was sentenced to five years in prison after earlier admitting two counts of possession of a firearm.

Hall was travelling in a taxi in Mobberley, Cheshire, at 9.50pm on December 15 when it was stopped by police and two guns were recovered from the vehicle.

Ballistic tests on one of the weapons proved it was the same one fired at Christian Hickey, then aged seven, and his mother Jayne in the porch of their home in Gillingham Road, Winton, Eccles, on October 12.

Mrs Hickey answered the door to two men — and after a brief conversation, one of the pair fired a number of shots inside the house.

Mrs Hickey was hit twice in the legs and Christian was shot once in his left leg. Both required surgery.

The same gun was also used in a shooting of a man outside a car wash in Ashton-in-Makerfield on March 30 last year — the victim suffered a bullet wound to the abdomen.

DI Neil Blackwood, of Greater Manchester Police’s Serious Crime Division, said: “I hope this sentence serves as a warning to anyone involved in gun crime.

“We are determined in our mission for gun-free streets and will continue to proactively pursue those involved in the illegal use and possession of firearms. 

“If you have a weapon illegally or know where one is being kept, I would urge you to hand it in or contact police or tell us anonymously where it is.”
Co-defendant Aldaire Warmington, 29, of no fixed address, was in contact with Hall by mobile telephone on the night the taxi was pulled over.

He received a six-year prison term after also earlier admitting possession of a firearm.

No-one has been charged with carrying out the Winton or Ashton-in-Makerfield shootings.

Anyone with concerns or information is asked to contact police on 101 or the independent charity Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.