WATCH: Men jailed after loaded gun thrown from window in police pursuit
Two people have been jailed after a man was seen throwing a loaded gun from a car window as they were pursued by firearms officers.
Dramatic footage shows how officers pursued the vehicle and then chased three men when they got out and fled and foot, with one found hiding in a garden shed.
The drama unfolded when firearms officers tried to stop an Audi which on Cambridge Street near the Rep Theatre in Birmingham city centre on September 19, 2019.
The car had been linked to gun crime thanks to an investigation led by the city’s complex crime team.
They pursued it when it failed to stop, and bodycam footage captures the moment one of the firearms officers spots an item thrown from the moving car on Summerhill Road.
It was found and turned out to be a loaded revolver.
The pursuit continued until the car was abandoned on Morville Street in Ladywood and the three men in the car fled.
Two were followed on foot and arrested on grassland, while a third was found hiding in a garden shed.
Reiss Clarke, 26, of Pomeroy Road, Bartley Green, was the front seat passenger in the car and admitted possession of the firearm.
He has now been jailed for eight years and two months.
Jonathon McCann, 25, of Fairlands Road, Northfield, was behind the wheel of the Audi and admitted dangerous driving.
He was jailed for a year and banned from driving for 18 months.
A third man was originally charged with possession of a firearm but he was later found to have no case to answer.
Detective Inspector Jim Church, from Force CID, said: “This was great work by our officers who showed real determination to stop this car, knowing that those in it may be linked to gun crime.
“The video shows their determination and professionalism in arresting the men, and as a result we’ve taken a gun off the streets and put a dangerous offender behind bars.”
