Five men and a teenager have been jailed after police were “lured” to a pub fire and shot at in Birmingham during riots. The men were given sentences ranging from 18 to 30 years at Birmingham Crown Court while a 17-year-old was jailed for 12 years.
Twelve shots were fired at police after a petrol bomb attack on the Bartons Arms in Aston.The West Midlands force helicopter was also shot at.The five men and teenager were jailed for between 12 and 30 years.
Judge William Davis QC said the aim of the disorder was to draw police to the pub in order to attack them. “Members of the group attacked the building. They smashed windows, they went inside and ransacked the premises. They threw chairs and tables out on to the pavement. Other members of the group stayed on the pavement outside the building. Some threw missiles, bottles and the like, at a passing police car. Others lit petrol bombs that had been brought to the scene.”

Jurors in the six-week trial were shown CCTV footage of a gunman firing at the police helicopter as it tracked suspects during disturbances in the early hours of 10 August.