A convicted drug dealer’s DNA was found on the trigger of an Uzi submachine gun which was hidden in a grandad’s attic, a court heard.
Joseph McCollum, 39, was also linked to a second gun which was used in a shooting seven years ago, recovered from a bedroom wardrobe in the bungalow.
A judge told him as he was locked up on Monday: “There are numerous occasions of people being murdered or accidentally killed by criminals who use weapons like this. You were performing a vital function for them, which helps them to be murderers and serious criminals who eat away at the heart of this city.”
Liverpool Crown Court heard on Monday that Merseyside Police executed a search warrant at the home of a man named Paul Wilson on Brenchley Close in Dovecot on August 30 last year.
This led to an “Uzi-style automatic weapon” and stock being recovered from a blue plastic bag in the attic, alongside a handgun, 85 shotgun cartridges, four magazines and a further quantity of ammunition, the Liverpool Echo reports.
Nardeen Nemat, prosecuting, described how a Makarov pistol with an attached magazine was also found on top of a wardrobe in a bedroom, beside a sealed bag containing cannabis. McCollum’s DNA was discovered of the recoil spring, handgrip and trigger guard of this weapon, as well as on the trigger, trigger guard, handgrip, magazine release, safety switch and disassembly pin of the Uzi.
The former gun had its serial number removed and was successfully test fired using two of seven rounds contained within the magazine it was recovered alongside. It was also discovered that this firearm had previously been discharged during a shooting on Pagebank Road in Dovecot in November 2019.
The Uzi was meanwhile found to be an Israel Militaries Industries-manufactured weapon which was successfully test fired in both semi automatic and fully automatic mode. McCollum, of Ulster Road in Old Swan, has a total of 29 previous convictions for 66 offences, including 54 months for heroin, crack cocaine and cannabis supply offences in 2021.
Nick Cockrell, defending, told the court: “He was not known to be involved in an organised crime group. His background and history has led him to be in close contact with some very serious criminals. As a result, he has been in possession of two very serious firearms.”
McCollum admitted two counts of possession of a prohibited weapon and possession of ammunition for a firearm when prohibited for life. Wearing a blue Montirex tracksuit top in the dock, he gave a thumbs up to his supporters in the public gallery as he was led to the cells after being jailed for six years, at which stage one woman told him: “Love you.”
Sentencing, Judge Simon Medland KC said: “You are not yet 40, and yet I have to sentence you for these very serious offences. They are very serious because your own knowledge of your city will include knowledge that, in Liverpool and on the Wirral, there are numerous occasions of people being murdered or accidentally killed by criminals who use weapons like this.
“Weapons like this have no lawful purpose in society. Their only purpose is to support serious organised criminals. Although there is no record of you having any contact with any organised crime group, you did have contact with their stock in trade.
“Regrettably, you had a very bad start in your life. I am sure that has been a a significant driver in the bad decisions you have made and the bad company you have made.
“But when it comes to guns like this, held on behalf of very serious criminals, you were performing a vital function for them, which helps them to be murderers and serious criminals who eat away at the heart of this city and county. Therefore, the sentences must be very long in order to deter people from assisting criminals like this.”
Wilson was previously jailed for four years in March. The 61-year-old admitted three counts of possession of a prohibited weapon, possession of ammunition without a certificate and possession of cannabis resin.
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