Drug dealer Kevin Hutchinson-Foster jailed for supplying gun to Mark Duggan before death that sparked London riots

Gun had earlier been used to 'pistol whip' a barber until he was nearly unconscious

Kevin Hutchinson-Foster has been sentenced for passing the gun to Mark Duggan (PA)

A drug dealer who supplied a gun to Mark Duggan minutes before his fatal shooting by police sparked the 2011 summer riots, was jailed for a total of 11 years today.

Kevin Hutchinson-Foster was found guilty at the Old Bailey in January of giving Mr Duggan the gun 15 minutes before he was shot dead on August 4, 2011.

The 29-year-old's death in Ferry Lane, Tottenham, north London, sparked riots that swept across London and other English towns and cities.

Hutchinson-Foster, 30, denied selling or transferring a prohibited firearm to Mr Duggan between July 28 and August 5, 2011.

A jury failed to reach a verdict but he was convicted at the Old Bailey following a retrial.

Judge David Radford jailed him for seven years for supplying the gun, and a further four years for other offences.

Hutchinson-Foster is already in custody serving a sentence for drugs offences and was on licence at the time of the offence.

He was also jailed today after admitting using the same gun to "pistol whip" a barber five days before.

He is seen on CCTV threatening Peter Osadebay then returning and beating him with the gun until he nearly lost consciousness.

Hutchinson-Foster was jailed for four years for possessing a firearm with intent to cause fear of violence and nine months concurrently for assault occasioning actual bodily harm.

Judge Radford told Hutchinson-Foster he could not be held responsible for what happened later.

But he had passed an illegal weapon with a bullet in its magazine to Mr Duggan "for what must have been for a serious criminal purpose".

Stuart Denney QC, defending, said: "He cannot take responsibility for what happened in Ferry Lane or in terms of the riot.

"No one could have foreseen what happened. There is a real issue as to what happened in Ferry Lane.

"There are those who think that in some way, Mr Hutchinson-Foster's conduct contributed to the death of Mark Duggan, which is entirely inaccurate.

"There was a series of threats which continued whilst he was in custody. He has twice been placed in solitary confinement."

Mr Duggan's shooting and the finding of a gun in Ferry Lane led to controversy and denials from supporters that he had been armed.

There was speculation that Mr Duggan was on his way to avenge the death of his cousin Kevin Easton, 23, who was stabbed in a club in March 2011.

But a source has since said that investigators looking into Mr Duggan's death have found nothing to suggest that was true.

The trial was told that Mr Duggan was under police surveillance on the day he died and the day before.

He went in a minicab to Leyton, east London, where he collected the the BBM Bruni Model 92 handgun in a shoe box from Hutchinson-Foster, before continuing to Tottenham.

The cab was pulled over by armed police in four unmarked cars in a "hard stop", and as Mr Duggan got out clutching the gun, he was shot by officers.

Known only as V53, the man who shot him said he was sure Mr Duggan was holding a handgun, while other officers also claimed Mr Duggan was hiding something in his hand and then raised what appeared to be a gun as he got out of the cab.

The jury was told it was not their task to decide the "rights and wrongs" of Mr Duggan's shooting, which will be examined at the inquest into his death in September.

Detective Chief Superintendent Dean Haydon, of the Metropolitan Police Trident Gang Crime Command, said later: "I welcome the sentence today as this is the culmination of a complex and lengthy investigation and the sentence reflects the seriousness of his offending.

"There is an ongoing IPCC investigation into the death of Mark Duggan and the circumstances of his death will be a matter for the Coroner at a later date.

"The investigation into the shooting of Mark Duggan is being conducted by the Independent Police Complaints Commission."

PA