A man has been jailed after he threatened passers-by with a firearm in Cippenham, Slough in May 2008.
Paul Badham, aged 43, of Masons Road, Cippenham, Slough was sentenced to two years and nine months at Reading Crown Court on Friday (30/1). He had earlier pleaded guilty to seven offences of being in possession of an imitation firearm with intent to cause fear of violence.
At around 2.45pm on Tuesday 6 May 2008, Slough police received a high number of phone calls from members of the public about a man walking down Bower Way, Cippenham, carrying what was believed by witnesses to be a genuine firearm. The man, later identified as Paul Badham, was reported to be threatening passers-by and pointing the firearm at houses and vehicles.
His actions included pointing the firearm at various members of the public with his hand on the trigger and threatening to shoot them. Badham was witnessed pointing the firearm at a child in a pushchair, as well as pointing it through the open window of a van at the occupants and confronting the driver of a bus full of passengers.
Slough Det Con Richard Jarvis, who investigated the incident, said: “Due to the time of day and the hot weather, there were a lot of people out in the streets who witnessed these events and who were threatened by Badham. The incident brought the whole area of Cippenham to a complete standstill. Local schools had to close and prevent all their pupils leaving for their own protection, as sightings of Badham increased.
“The incident caused fear throughout the community and attracted significant media attention at a national as well as a local level. Although the firearm was later found to be an air weapon, its appearance and Badham’s threats meant that most witnesses believed it to be a handgun.
“Badham’s actions were described as being out of character. Nevertheless, he caused a major incident which had a very serious impact on the community and left many people fearing for their lives.”
Thames Valley Police ~ Slough
