Man jailed for 2.5 years for Hull firearms incident

Following an incident in December last year on Hessle Road, Hull, a 35-year-old man has been sentenced to two and a half years in prison at Hull Crown Court today for a firearms offence.

Andrejs Saveljevs of Boulevard, Hull, pleaded guilty at an earlier court hearing in February this year to Section 16A of the Firearms Act, possession of a firearm or imitation firearm with intent to cause fear of violence, following an incident in the early hours of Sunday, 15 December 2019.

Reports were received from the public at around 1am that Saveljevs was in the street brandishing what appeared to be a handgun.

Armed officers immediately attended where Saveljevs was located and found to be in possession of a weapon, which he aimed at armed officers.

Saveljevs was shot by police and taken to hospital to be treated for injuries. The weapon was recovered and examined as part of the investigation, later being identified as an imitation 9mm calibre Beretta Model 92F Pistol, which will now be destroyed by order of the court.

Saveljevs was charged with the offence on Thursday, 26 December and remanded into custody until his sentencing today, Friday 19 June.

The incident was referred at the time to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) to carry out an independent investigation that looked into the officer’s actions as part of the incident.

Their investigation concluded earlier this year with their findings that no criminal conduct or misconduct was identified for any officer involved in the incident.

Senior Investigating Officer, Detective Chief Inspector Phil Gadd said: “Saveljevs gave no consideration for the concern and fear that he would cause to the general public when he was seen brandishing what appeared to be a legitimate firearm.

“I have no doubt that this would have been a terrifying experience for those in the area, as well as for our officers who attended and had to make split second decisions to ensure the safety of the public, which will always be our priority.

“The findings of the IOPC investigation further confirms that our officers performed their duties that night exactly as they should have. There was an immediate threat they assessed and took action against to protect and prevent, which is exactly what they are trained to do.

“Any report of a firearm that we receive will always be treated with the utmost seriousness and receive an immediate response, as we will not risk the loss of innocent lives due to one person’s decision to break the law. We will always aim to deliver the best possible service to our communities across the Humberside Force area.”

An update from the IOPC is also available to read on their website.