Drive-by shooter hit mourners at wake

A gunman, who opened fire at gang rivals attending a wake, has been convicted of attempted murder.

Three men were injured and a young girl was crushed and seriously hurt in the aftermath at the event in the Lozells area of Birmingham in February 2023.

Meshaq Berryman was found guilty after a three week-trial at Birmingham Crown Court earlier this year, it can now be revealed, and will be sentenced in December.

The court heard the shooting was not a random act, but "part of a plan to kill".

The funeral was being held for 19-year-old Akeem Bailey, who had been fatally stabbed in October 2022.

Police said he was not associated with gangs, but Berryman had reason to suspect gang members would be present.

Det Insp Francis Knock said it was by sheer luck and chance it was not a triple murder case.

He said: "Street gang rivalry has been going on on the streets of Birmingham for many years now unfortunately."

CCTV footage showed the panic in the crowd as shots were fired from a passing car before it made off at speed.

Det Insp Knock described it as "harrowing".

"They're there to commemorate the life of a loved one or an associate. And if you can possibly expect one place where you would be able to do so in peace, it should be at a wake after a funeral," he said.

Another man was found not guilty after a trial at Birmingham Crown Court in October, which means the result of Berryman's trial can now be reported.

West Midlands Police has the fourth highest gun crime rate in England and Wales, with 576 firearm offences recorded in 2023-24, according to the latest Home Office data.

Officers recovered 152 firearms in 2023, up from 121 the previous year, since introducing a new model to crack down on gun crime.

Figures showed there were 92 shootings across the region last year, compared with 126 the year before.

The force's armoury, at a secret location, is currently storing thousands of weapons including sawn-off shotguns, homemade shotguns known as slam guns, antique revolvers, rifles, handguns and crossbows.

Some of the weapons confiscated include reactivated firearms.

Gareth Cooper, ballistic material examiner for West Midlands Police, said: "We see some firearms used on the street which are made to be viable firearms - former military weapons or restored antique weapons.

"We also see converted blank firers. So weapons that are produced not to fire projectiles but are adapted to do so."

He added the force's intelligence operations were constantly working to identify imports of firearms into the West Midlands.

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