News
Police appeal for information and witnesses after a shotgun is fired in Oldham
Greater Manchester Police said "there's no place for firearms" on the streets of Greater Manchester.
Greater Manchester Police (GMP) is appealing for information and eyewitnesses after a shotgun was fired several times in Oldham.
Just before 6pm on Friday 8 July, officers were called to a report of the sound of shots fired on Broadbent Road in Oldham.
GMP confirmed over the weekend that an investigation was launched immediately following the incident, but after no evidence was initially believed to be found and no one was reported to have been injured, the force said enquiries were ongoing into whether any shots had actually been fired.
Following extensive CCTV enquiries, detectives have now confirmed that a firearms discharge did take place.
GMP explained that enquiries so far suggest that a man discharged the firearm twice into the driver’s window of a vehicle, before the offender and the victim made off, and officers located the victim, in his 40s, safe and well yesterday.
The victim said he does not wish to cooperate at this time, GMP revealed.
“This was clearly a distressing incident for those nearby who will no doubt have heard the noise from the incident where it’s believed a shot gun was used,” said Detective Chief Inspector Ben Cottam, from GMP’s Oldham district.
“Extensive enquiries were carried out following the first report and a discharge was confirmed to have taken place some time later.
“This is being treated as an isolated and deliberate incident and I would like to reassure residents that getting to the bottom of what happened remains an absolute priority with a number of lines of enquiry already being followed up.”
He added that “there’s no place for firearms” on the streets of Greater Manchester.
“We have a number of officers and detectives in force working every day to bring those responsible for possessing, transferring or using firearms to justice,” DCI Cottam added.
Read more: Former Oldham doctor who killed mum-of-three in botched procedure jailed
GMP is now appealing for eyewitnesses, or anyone with any information, dashcam footage, or CCTV footage to come forward and assist with investigations – which can be reported online or via LiveChat at www.gmp.police.uk, or by calling 101.
Alternatively, you can contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.
Featured Image – GMP
News
Jackass star Bam Margera cancels Manchester shows due to ‘injury’ after street fight video emerges
Danny Jones
Former Jackass star Bam Margera has had to cancel both of his Manchester shows just hours before the first event was supposed to take place due to injury.
The skater, TV personality, filmmaker and former stunt performer is currently in the UK for his Q&A tour and live interview series with DJ and presenter Matt Stocks, having recently played in Glasgow and a pair of shows in the Republic of Ireland.
However, the 44-year-old has unexpectedly had to cancel both of his intimate conversation dates at Gorilla in the city centre, with the venue citing “unforeseen complications emerging from a recent injury”.
He was set to play this evening and again next week on Tuesday, 30 April, with the shows billed as somewhat of a meet and greet with Margera and him “talking from the heart”.
The news comes less than 24 hours after Margera shared a clip of him on the phone complaining to police in the US after a video of him fighting on a street in LA surfaced online.
While details surrounding how the scrap arose and the identity of the other man in the video still remain scarce, Margera has officially claimed self-defence. He can be heard shouting several expletives in the man’s direction throughout the altercation.
Responding to what he called a ‘bum fight’ on his other Instagram page, he tells 911: “Get a police officer here. Los Angeles Police Department is fucking worthless…
“You should be ashamed of yourselves… It’s been two hours of us trying to sleep and, fucking, this dude’s throwing shit everywhere and nobody showed up.”
Read more:
Speaking to TMZ, a representative from his team reiterated that the unidentified male was the aggressor and eventually exited the situation with both parties leaving without injury at the time.
That being said, is still unclear as to whether the incident and the cancellation of his Gorilla shows in Manchester are linked.
Offering a separate statement directly, he added: “I’m not going to be threatened or attacked without defending myself and my friends or people trying to just walk by this idiot, I aimed only to neutralize the threat and ensure the safety of my crew.”
Bam’s rep told the outlet that the altercation ended with no injuries and the aggressor eventually departed and he is still yet to issue a response after calling off the remainder of his dates.
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Featured Images — Bam Margera (via Instagram)
News
FA Cup final confirmed for 3pm kick-off time as Metropolitan Police stress safety for fans
Danny Jones
The start time for the 2023/24 FA Cup final has officially been confirmed with holders Manchester City and challengers Manchester United set to kick off at 3pm on Saturday, 25 May.
It’s a Manc final for the second year running and yet another Manchester Derby this year as City beat Chelsea on penalties to try and defend one of their trophies from last season and Man United did just about enough to scrape through against Coventry City this past weekend.
Logistics and travel arrangements for the conclusion of last year’s FA Cup proved problematic, with the Metropolitan Police stressing that they needed the schedule brought forward to try and help curb crowd trouble – the first time the final had been reverted back to a traditional 3pm start since 2011.
Kick-off times for the knockout tournament have varied for the last three finals, having taken place at 4:45 and 5:15pm in the two years prior to 2023’s first-ever all-Manchester final, but it looks as though the same rationale has been put in place once again.
As per an official statement by the FA, the final has now been officially confirmed as 3pm BST which has been agreed with local authorities, members of the Safety Advisory Group and broadcasters, as well as with the clubs who must take the time needed for fans to travel to and from Wembley into consideration.
While pockets of fighting broke out before and after the game last year, it was deemed that this time would still be the best kick-off time for all parties involved and there will, of course, be an increased police presence in London for the game next month.
Although prioritising safety comes as welcome news, it’ll no doubt prove to be a blow to broadcasters who prefer later kick-offs when eyeing up peak audience numbers; the game is also set to clash with ITV’s coverage of the rugby as the Investec Champions Cup final is also due to start at 2:45pm.
With last season’s historic FA Cup final being the first time the two sides had met in the final in the entire history of the oldest competition in all of football, it rounded off a massive year of viewing figures for the tournament which has continued to hit record numbers in 2024.
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The game will once again be shown live on BBC One, BBC iPlayer and ITV1; ITVX, UTV, as well as STV, and there will no doubt be huge screenings of the game all over Greater Manchester, where an increased police presence is also expected.
With Man City having dropped out of the Champions League, this year’s FA Cup final could see them defend the first of their treble for last season. As for their fierce and historic rivals, this is the second year in a row that both United’s men’s and women’s teams have made it to their respective FA Cup finals.
Is it going to be back-to-back FA Cups for the Blues or are the Reds going to make it two trophies in Erik ten Hag’s first two seasons?
Featured Images — @brentflanders (via Flickr)/FA Cup (via X)
Emily Sergeant -
11th July 2022 
