A gunman who shot a rival in the foot before going on the run has been jailed.
Quamai Nugent, now aged 34, brought two loaded pistols to a party in St Ann’s before seeking out and shooting his victim.
As panicked bystanders fled into the night, nearby response officers ran towards the scene in Lowdham Street, where they found Nugent brawling on the floor with his victim.
During a struggle in the early hours of 2 June 2024, the unarmed officers found one of Nugent’s guns on the floor and fought bravely to keep the weapon safe.
As they also struggled with several hostile onlookers, Nugent was able to flee the scene but was tracked down and arrested after a manhunt and public appeal.
The weapon used in the shooting – identified as a .44 calibre pistol by the bullet retrieved from the victim’s foot – was never recovered.
The second discarded firearm, however, was found to have traces of Nugent’s DNA in its internal mechanisms – a clear indication that he had assembled and loaded it himself.
Web searches about both weapons were later found during forensic analysis of a mobile phone seized from Nugent after he was detained for a previous offence.
Faced with the overwhelming evidence against him, Nugent, of no fixed address, later pleaded guilty to wounding with intent and two counts of having a firearm with intent to commit an indictable offence.
Nugent, formerly of Carlton, has been on remand since his arrest.
Appearing at Nottingham Crown Court on Tuesday (13 October), he was jailed for 13 years.
Earlier in the hearing, Nugent’s counsel explained that Nugent had acted in retribution after seeing his victim at a party.
Nugent, he said, blamed the man for shooting and injuring him some six years earlier.
After seeing his alleged attacker at the party, Nugent is said to have become angry and gone home to arm himself with the weapon.
He claimed that, in carrying out the attack, Nugent was aiming to wound rather than to kill his victim.
Detective Inspector Lisa Jones, of Nottinghamshire Police, said:
“Nugent chose to go out carrying two loaded firearms – one of which he then fired into a crowded space.
“He probably doesn’t feel like it today, but he can count himself lucky that he isn’t facing a far longer sentence for killing someone.
“As this case draws to a close, I would like to put on record my thanks to the unarmed response officers who found themselves at the centre of a highly dangerous and volatile situation.
“As they fought to detain two violent suspects and control a hostile crowd, they suddenly and unexpectedly found themselves in the presence of a loaded firearm.
“I know that must have been extremely frightening, but thanks to their quick thinking and professionalism, that weapon – and the vital evidence it was found to contain – was kept safe.
“Thanks in no small part to their actions, Nugent will now spend a very long time in jail and Nottingham is a safer place for it.”
