'Would-be killer' who helped plan sub-machine gun attack given life sentence

Sujeel Amjad played a key role in planning the night of violence last December but has since been jailed for life after a major investigation by West Midlands Police.

The investigation revealed Amjad and a number of other people travelled to an address in Wolverhampton the evening of December 3, where it's believed he picked up multiple firearms including a sub-machine pistol that would later be used in two shootings that night.

Minutes later, Amjad and his associates drove back to Birmingham where the guns were handed to another man, who has since fled the country and is still on the run.

That man travelled to an address on Southbourne Avenue, Hodge Hill, before opening fire on the front of a house where his target lived.

Witnesses described seeing the gunman in a balaclava returning to a white Seat Leon before he was driven away by another man.

Luckily, the gunman's target was not in at the time, however, when he returned home in a vehicle a few hours later, the same gunman was waiting for him, this time armed with the Skorpion.

Multiple shots were fired towards the car, with one of the victims believed they had been shot, however, all shots had missed.

The stolen cars used in the shooting, a Volkswagen Tiguan and a Seat Leon, were driven away before being burned out.

Amjad, 22, of Burney Lane, Alum Rock, was convicted of attempted murder of the second shooting and charged with arson of the two cars.

Images recovered from Amjad's phone also show him holding two guns, along with an image of a Skorpion with may have been the one used on the day of the shooting.

Amjad was jailed for life on Friday, being ordered to serve a minimum of 20 years.

The second man, who officers believe fired the shots, is still being sought by police with the assistance of international partners.

Detective Inspector Francis Nock, from the West Midlands Police major crime team, said: "The Skorpion is a military-grade weapon, capable of discharging around 800 rounds per minute.

"It’s incredible really that no one was actually hit, despite that clearly being the intention of the gunman.

"Mobile phone and CCTV analysis helped us connect Amjad to the planning of the second shooting, and we know from text messages that he was involved in arranging false number plates for at least one of the cars which were used in the shootings and which he later helped destroy.

"We are determined to bring the gunman who is still on the run to justice, and won’t stop until he is behind bars."