Three men have been handed lengthy jail sentences after the attempted murder of a 16-year-old boy in Salford last March.
Aiden Broadhurst, Kyle Meighan, and Jieh Sufyaan have each been jailed for 32 years.
Each of the three men were jailed for life at Manchester Crown Court yesterday (26 February 2024) after being found guilty of attempted murder following a two-month trial, and all received the same sentences – including an additional three years each on licence.
It comes after a 16-year-old boy, who Greater Manchester Police (GMP) say cannot be named for legal reasons, was riding his motorbike through the Salford town of Eccles on the afternoon of Sunday 19 March 2023, when he was spotted by Broadhurst, Meighan, and Sufyaan and an “immediate assembly for a targeted attack” was then promptly “organised”.
#JAILED | These three men were today given jail sentences of 32 years each after they attempted to murder a 16-year-old boy in #Salford on Mother's Day last year with a gun.
GMP's Major Incident Team worked tirelessly to secure the convictions.
The court heard that the boy was riding the motorbike with his girlfriend to a local convenience store, and the pair made their way onto Station Road towards Armitage Street, with CCTV showing they were closely-followed by the suspect motorbike, which traced the route the boy had taken and pulled up alongside them.
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Seconds later, two gunshots were heard.
The 16-year-old boy sustained a single gunshot wound, which went through his arm and into his chest, and was taken to hospital for treatment shortly after – but thankfully, was discharged a couple of days later to recover at home.
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Following the distressing incident, a police investigation was subsequently launched, which was named ‘Operation Knott’.
Three men have been jailed for life after the attempted murder of a 16-year-old Salford boy / Credit: GMP
‘Operation Knott’ was primarily led by GMP’s Serious Crime Division, in conjunction with Salford district policing teams, and was said to have involved “painstaking” work to determine the events tht happened, all eventually leading to the apprehending and sentencing of the three suspects.
“We hope that today’s result will go some way to allowing the victim to heal and move on with his life,” commented GMP’s Detective Chief Inspector, Neil Higginson, following yesterday’s sentencing.
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“Every single officer who took part in this investigation is committed to keeping people who live within the local community safe, as it is simply unacceptable to have people carrying guns and using these, and we will make it our life’s work to ensure that these kinds of people are taken off the streets.
“We would also like to thank the community of Salford, as their ongoing support ensures we can tackle crime together and keep people of Manchester safe.”
Featured Image – GMP
News
Body of woman found in River Mersey last year finally identified after ‘extensive’ investigation
The body of woman who was found in the River Mersey last year has finally been identified.
Following what has been described as an ‘extensive investigation’ by Greater Manchester Police‘s (GMP) Major Incident Team to determine the identity of the body, which was sadly discovered in the river adjacent to Chorlton Water Park on 21 March 2024, the family of the victim has now been informed and supported by specialist officers.
The victim has been formally named as 38-year-old Laura Stanley, who was originally from Derbyshire but was living in Stockport.
After the body was discovered, and ‘exhaustive and determined’ investigation by GMP officers began to identify here, including detailed checks of both national and international databases.
The Major Incident Team (MIT) also closely worked in collaboration with specialist forensic service providers to create an anthropological profile, which eventually culminated in the creation of a facial reconstruction image.
Following several media appeals, a relative of Laura contacted officers and then a DNA match was confirmed through a familial link.
“Laura was a kind and gentle person with a great sense of fun and adventure,” Laura’s family said in a heartbreaking tribute to her.
“She was generous, thoughtful, caring and always keen to volunteer within the community. Laura was a proud and loving mum and she will be greatly missed by her girls and all of her friends and family who loved her dearly.”
The River Mersey, across from Chorlton Water Park, where Laura’s body was discovered / Credit: Wikimedia Commons
While Laura has now been identified, police say further investigations will take place to understand her last movements, the events that led to her death, and her discovery in the river.
Additionally, as is standard practice, GMP’s Professional Standards Directorate is also reviewing a previous missing report relating to Laura in the time before the discovery of her body, which will determine prior contact relating to Laura, and whether the appropriate measures were enacted.
#UPDATE | A woman who was discovered in the River Mersey last year has been identified following an extensive investigation by officers in GMP’s Major Incident Team.
Thank you to those of you who have shared our appeals over the last year.
Anyone who knew Laura and thinks they may be able to assist with the investigation is asked to contact police by calling 101, or by using the Live Chat Service at gmp.police.uk, quoting log number 1191 of 21 March 2024.
Alternatively, you can contact the Major Incident Team Syndicate 3 directly on 0161 856 9479, or the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.
More than 70,000 home buyers across England are estimated to have missed the stamp duty relief deadline.
This sadly means they’ll be required to fork out thousands of pounds extra.
In case you hadn’t heard, up until yesterday (31 March 2025), anyone who was moving and had bought a home in the past was not required to pay Stamp Duty Land Tax, better-known as just stamp duty, on the portion of the property price up to £250,000.
But from today (1 April), this threshold has now fallen back to £125,000, which unfortunately means that property purchasers are facing an extra £2,500 in moving costs, on average.
While the end of the stamp duty relief will mostly affect those Greater Manchester buyers who had already previously purchased properties, first time buyers are sadly not exempt from the deadline changes too, as their current stamp duty threshold of £425,000 has now fallen back to £300,000 as of today.
Person holding the keys to a new house in their hand / Credit: Maria Ziegler (via Unsplash)
Given that the average property price for a first time buyer-type home is currently around £227,965, according to Rightmove, the new £300,000 threshold may hit those purchasing properties in more expensive areas – particularly the South East.
A third of those estimated 70,000 home buyers who have missed the deadline are thought to be first time buyers.
Leading property platform Rightmove published an analysis in February into just how much of an impact the end of the stamp duty relief would have on home buyers, all while calling on the UK Government to announce a short extension to the deadline to help people in the middle of the property purchasing process avoid potentially thousands of pounds in extra moving costs.
But despite these calls from industry leaders, there was no extension to the deadline announced in the last week’s latest Spring Statement.
“It’s extremely disappointing that the Government has not used the Spring Statement as an opportunity to extend the impending stamp duty deadline for those currently going through the home-moving process,” commented Rightmove’s property expert Colleen Babcock.
“We estimate over 70,000 people are going to miss the deadline and complete in April instead, and a third of those are first time buyers.”
Emily Sergeant -
27th February 2024 
