Man who fired shot into car door jailed for seven years

But Bradford Crown Court heard that the 9mm semi-automatic handgun used in the incident had never been recovered and was still available for other criminals.

Mohammed Hanees Shabhir, 28, had fallen out with his intended target back in September 2010 and the shooting incident in Summerville Road, Bradford, followed earlier altercations between the two men who both had drug-related convictions.

Shabhir, of Spencer Road, Bradford, had told 26-year-old Qaiser Rafique to meet him that night, but the complainant had to dive into a friend’s Lexus car when the defendant ran towards brandishing the loaded handgun.

Prosecutor Stephen Wood told the court how Rafique heard a loud bang as he ducked down in the passenger seat and the Lexus drove off at speed.

Shabhir had fired one shot at the passenger door from about 10-feet, but the bullet had struck a cross-member in the door which prevented it from entering the cabin area.

A spent cartridge was found at the scene of the shooting and the next day armed police stopped a VW Golf car which Shabhir was driving.

A similar 9mm cartridge for the 9mm was found in the car but Mr Wood confirmed that the weapon itself had not been traced.

Shahbir had originally faced a charge of attempted murder, but after a lengthy legal process involving two trials and a hearing at the Court of Appeal, he finally pleaded guilty yesterday to an alternative charge of possessing the 9mm handgun with intent to endanger the life of Rafique.

Shabhir had been due to stand trial this week, but the prosecution accepted his guilty plea after it emerged that Rafique, who is serving a prison sentence himself, was refusing to come to court to give evidence.

“To what extent you and Mr Rafique were in business together in drug dealing is unknown,” said Judge Jonathan Durham Hall QC. “What is abundantly clear is that you managed to acquire a lethal weapon, a semi-automatic sidearm, and following an angry confrontation in one part of Bradford you and Mr Rafique came into further confrontation in Summerville Road.”