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Leeds Live
Leeds Live
National
Charles Gray

Leeds thug threatened couple with shotgun in hunt for ex

A Leeds thug broke into a house and pointed a shotgun at a woman during his search for his ex-partner.

Damien Cooper broke in to a property in Ossett in the early hours of the morning and used the weapon to threaten the couple living there.

He was also involved in a shotgun being fired twice at a property in Beeston in a suspected gang dispute just a couple of weeks earlier.

The 30-year-old thug, who only pleaded guilty two days after a trial had started, was handed a 14-year extended sentence today (Thursday). He was told he must serve two-thirds of a nine-year custodial term followed by a five-year licence period.

Prosecutor Graham O'Sullivan said two shots were fired at the front door of a property on Woodview Mount, Beeston, at 7.30pm on May 1, 2021.

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CCTV showed Cooper was inside a black Volvo when it was driven to the scene. An unidentified person inside the car fired the shots before it was driven away and set alight.

Cooper later went back to the location of the burnt out vehicle to check that the car was "sufficiently burnt".

Police found his DNA on the petrol cap of the car.

Leeds Crown Court was told Cooper went to Blackpool for a couple of weeks "until things cooled down" but was arrested when he returned to Leeds.

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While on bail, Cooper went to a party in search of his ex-partner.

He messaged a couple who lived in Ossett demanding they tell him where she was.

They were woken up at 4.30am to the sound of banging on their front door. They then heard glass smash and Cooper downstairs shouting, "Where is she?"

The man grabbed a baseball bat and went downstairs to ward Cooper off.

Cooper then went to his car and returned with a shotgun, which he pointed at the woman.

Mr O'Sullivan said: "She was terrified and fell to the floor."

Cooper, of Clark Terrace, Cross Green, left the property and drove off.

The couple contacted police, who found him and arrested him.

He has previous convictions for assaulting his ex-partner, who had a restraining order against him.

Sentencing Cooper, Judge Andrew Stubbs QC said he regarded the defendant as a high risk offender due to his previous convictions.

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