A police aircraft helped armed officers locate a man carrying guns.
Officers arrested the suspect and went on to seize two converted guns and ammunition after stopping a Ford Fiesta off the A610 Nuthall Road in Nottingham.
The proactive action was in response to intelligence 29-year-old Troi Brown was out and about with a gun.
Earlier that day Brown had put the weapons in the boot of the car.
A police helicopter was later deployed and assisted in efforts to locate the Fiesta, which was stopped on the night of 3 May 2022.
The driver, 26-year-old Sam Rigley, was quickly detained and when officers searched the car they recovered two pistols and 21 rounds of ammunition.
Further investigative work led to charges being brought against Brown, Rigley and two more men – 28-year-old Emre Bulbuller and 39-year-old Ronald Redmond.
Brown, of Amesbury Circus, Cinderhill, and Bulbuller, of Ralph Drive, Somercotes, Derbyshire, both pleaded guilty to two counts of possessing a prohibited firearm and a further count of possessing ammunition without a firearm certificate.
Brown, who also pleaded guilty to possessing a firearm when prohibited, was jailed for a total of six years when he appeared at Nottingham Crown Court for sentencing yesterday (Thursday 16 March 2023).
Bulbuller was also handed a six-year sentence.
Redmond, of Amesbury Circus, Cinderhill, pleaded guilty to entering into a criminal property arrangement.
He was given an eight-month sentence, which he had served on remand, so was immediately released on licence.
Rigley, of Elizabeth Park, Ironville, Derbyshire, also pleaded guilty to entering into a criminal property arrangement.
He is due to be sentenced at Nottingham Crown Court on 31 March 2023.
Detective Inspector Mark Adas, of the East Midlands Special Operations Unit (EMSOU), said: “Dangerous weapons such as those we seized have the potential to cause immense harm to communities.
“Guns like these can have fatal consequences, but thankfully we were able to remove them from the streets.
“I hope our proactive work, in this case, shows how committed we are, working closely with our partners, to making our region even safer and protecting people from harm.”
