Member of gang responsible for 'inflicting terror & misery' snared after his DNA is found on stashed gun

A South Yorkshire gang member who received his first conviction relating to firearms when he was just 14-years-old has been sent back to prison after his DNA was found on a converted revolver. 

The judge, Recorder Adrian Langdale KC, told Sheffield Crown Court that defendant, Jahmaine Watson, had been ‘entrenched’ in a ‘criminal lifestyle’ and gang culture, after becoming a member of the ‘Pitsmoor Shotta Boys’ (PSB) organised crime group at a young age.

Watson’s most recent conviction for possessing both a prohibited firearm, and ammunition without a certificate, came after South Yorkshire Police raided a property on Wiltshire Avenue in Denaby, near Doncaster. 

Eddison Flint, prosecuting, said officers recovered two weapons, along with 100 grams of cocaine, all of which had been stashed in a cupboard. 

Mr Flint told a hearing held on January 4, 2024 that Watson’s DNA was found on the trigger and grip of one of the recovered firearms, an Ekol firing revolver that had been adapted into a ‘viable firearm,’ as well as in the magazine of the weapon which had been loaded with one bullet. 

Recorder Langdale told Watson: “This gun was loaded and ready to be used, and it can only - in the circumstances - have been intended to be used to cause fear, distress or intended the risk of death or serious injury.”

He added: “You should know by now that firearms kill and maim not just their intended target, but they also harm innocent members of the public.”

Recorder Langdale said that while Watson, of Northumberland Lane, Denaby Main, near Doncaster did not have any connection with the property where the firearm with traces of his DNA was found; and he also had not been linked to, or charged in connection with, the large quantity of cocaine recovered, it was ‘significant’ that the guns and drugs were being stored together. 

Mr Flint told the court that 34-year-old Watson has a criminal record spanning 28 offences from 11 convictions, which includes previous firearm convictions, including an entry for possessing a firearm with intent to cause fear of violence, dating back to 2004 when he was just 14-years-old. 

Watson, who also has convictions relating to drug dealing, was subsequently jailed for three years in 2016 for conspiracy to possess a firearm. 

Recorder Langdale referred to Watson’s pre-sentence report, in which he detailed how his friend, Lewis Williams, was shot dead in Mexborough in 2021, relating to his involvement with the PSB. 

“That should have been enough for you to change your path, but here you are - two years later,” Recorder Langdale said. 

The court was told how the police raid resulting in the drugs and guns being recovered was carried out on December 1, 2022. During Watson’s subsequent police interview in June 2023, he answered no comment to all questions and provided a prepared statement in which he claimed he had been to the house, after being asked by a friend to fix a leak there, and said he may have inadvertently touched the weapon while attempting to make the necessary repairs. 

Watson later pleaded guilty to charges of possessing a prohibited firearm and possessing ammunition without a certificate during a hearing at the same court, and Recorder Langdale said Watson’s guilty pleas indicate he has moved away from the account he initially gave to police in his prepared statement.  

Defending, James Baird said that since Watson was released from prison in 2018, following his 2016 firearms conviction, there had been a gap in his offending. 

“The seriousness, and the rate of his offending has decelerated,” Mr Baird said.

He told the court that Watson now wants to put the background which has precipitated his offending to ‘one side,’ now that he has family responsibilities; and has been spending his time in custody on remand constructively. 

Recorder Langdale told Watson it was abundantly clear that he had ‘failed to heed’ warnings, both through his previous convictions and the death of his friend; adding that ‘only a significant sentence can be passed to act as a deterrent’. 

He jailed Watson for seven years, two months, and ordered the forfeiture and destruction of the firearm and amunition. 

The court was told how another individual had also received the mandatory minimum sentence for possessing a firearm, which carries a term of at least five years. 

Following Watson’s conviction, a South Yorkshire Police spokesperson confirmed the DNA of another man - Taylor Blackburn - was also found on one of the weapons following the warrant executed at the Denaby home in December 2022.

In November 2023, Blackburn, then aged 24, of Bosville Street, Rotherham, was charged with possession of a prohibited firearm and jailed for five years at Sheffield Crown Court.

Speaking today (Friday, January 5, 2024), Detective Chief Inspector Tony Slater, from the force’s Armed Crime Team, said: "This was a lengthy investigation that required meticulous forensic examination and has resulted in a key member of an organised crime group being jailed.

"The PSB have been known as a group that have inflicted terror and misery on our local communities and I hope local residents will share the same sense of relief we do that he is behind bars for a significant amount of time.

"Thanks to our dedicated Armed Crime Team, Watson's DNA was discovered on a loaded firearm which was found hidden in a cupboard in a very ordinary looking suburban home.

"The use of a firearm is incredibly dangerous and can result in significant injury or death. We have seen first-hand the devastation and terror these weapons cause and I am relieved we have been able to remove these firearms from our streets."

"I know as an Armed Crime Team we will not rest on our laurels and I know they are continuing to relentlessly pursue anyone within the criminal network who is in illegal possession of a firearm," DCI Slater added.

"You might think you are above the law, but you are not. You will be caught, and I would urge members of the public with information that can help us put more of these criminals behind bars to get in touch.

"The information you provide is often invaluable to our investigations and it really does make a huge difference. We want to work with you and together we can continue to crackdown on this criminality and rid our streets of dangerous firearms."