Two injured after gang-related machine gun battle outside party

The incident took place in Leyton in East London

A gang of five men and one woman were responsible (Metropolitan Police / SWNS.COM)

A gang of five men and one woman hit two innocent bystanders in a machine gun battle outside a party with hundreds of guests over a petty feud.

Some 34 bullets were blasted when two rival groups of heavily armed gunmen opened fire at each other outside a private function in east London.

At least eight rounds were unloaded from an Uzi submachine gun inside the rented hall in Leyton, forcing terrified partygoers out into the street.

Two innocent revellers suffered gunshot wounds after getting caught in the crossfire inside the building.

A man in his 40s was found with a bullet wound on his left leg when armed police arrived on the scene at 5am on October 28, 2017.Shortly afterwards a woman in her 20s turned up at a hospital in east London with a gunshot wound to her chest.

Both were lucky to escape with their lives or without any long-term injuries as both made full recoveries, police said.

Six suspects including five men and a woman were picked out by police using CCTV from a nearby industrial estate, number plate recognition cameras and phone data.

Getaway driver Shearine Thompson, 42, plus gunmen Sinan Ozger, 33, Michael Lawrence, 24, Kamal Parrish, 30, Haramein Mohammed, 35, and Jacob Maitland, 34, were identified by cops and arrested around a year after the shooting.

The shootout was sparked by an ongoing feud between Maitland and Parrish, police later discovered.

Footage of the rolling gun battle showed Lawrence blasted 10 bullets from an Uzi submachine pistol after leaving the party venue.

Parrish was also spotted firing two rounds from a Sig Sauer handgun while Maitland discharged three shots from a Makarov self-loading pistol.

Ozger was also seen offloading five rounds from a Tokarev self-loading pistol as guests fled the carnage.

Parrish was arrested on 14 October 2018, and Mohammed, Ozger and Ekwubir four days later when police raided their homes.

Lawrence was arrested a short while later and Thompson was linked to the shooting and interviewed by detectives while in prison for another offence in July 2018.

Clothing seized during the searches looked identical to that worn by the gunmen on the night of the shooting, police said.

At Snaresbrook Crown Court, Ozger and Thompson, both of Tottenham, north London, were the latest of the gang to the jailed after being found guilty last August.

Thompson was jailed for 11 years for conspiracy to commit grievous bodily harm with intent and possession of firearms with intent to endanger life, for her role as a getaway driver.

Ozger was handed a 21-year prison term for conspiracy to commit grievous bodily harm with intent and possession of firearms with intent to endanger life, surrounding the use of a Makarov self-loading pistol and a Tokarev self-loading pistol.

Parrish and Lawrence, who had been found guilty at the same court on 12 March following a four-week trial, were jailed in September.

Lawrence, who travelled over 140 miles from his in Tipton, West Midlands, to the crime scene, was given 15 years and six months behind bars for conspiracy to commit grievous bodily harm with intent and possession of firearms with intent to endanger life.

This related specifically to the possession and use of an Uzi submachine pistol and a Sig Sauer self-loading pistol.

Parrish, of Enfield, north London was sent to prison for 16 years for the same offence.

Detective Inspector Matthew Webb said after the sentencing on Friday: “The CCTV from this offence, plays like a scene from a movie – unfortunately though, this was a real-life event that took place on our streets in London and it was by sheer luck that no further significant injuries were caused.

“The effect the criminal use of firearms has in our communities is not lost on us and I hope the sentences imposed send a strong message to those involved in firearms criminality.

“Your actions are reprehensible and we will seek to bring you to justice.”

Both Mohammed, of Hackney, east London, and Maitland of Tottenham, will be sentenced on February 24 next year.

Mohammed was also found guilty of GBH with intent and possession of firearms with intent to endanger life, relating to the possession and use of an Uzi submachine pistol and a Sig Sauer self-loading pistol, in March.

Maitland pleaded guilty to possessing a firearm with intent to endanger life, surrounding the use of a Tokarev self-loading pistol, last 27 May.

DI Webb added: “This investigation has taken place over a number of years and demonstrates the commitment the Met has to holding those involved in the commission of violent offending to account.

“I would like to thank my investigation team, Crown Prosecution Team and Prosecuting Counsel for their support during the course of this complex investigation and for making London safer.

“The Met is committed to reducing violent crime. However, we also rely on our communities to help us and I would urge anyone with information about someone who may be carrying a weapon to contact police immediately whether in person or anonymously.”

SWNS