Jailed: Nottinghamshire man who threatened police with a gun and rammed police cars

Thomas Whelan pointed gun at officers and rammed police cars with vehicle during the incident at his home in Newthorpe, a court heard.

A court heard police had attended the home of Whelan, on Orchard Street, following a concern for his safety on June 8 last year.

Whelan had gone upstairs to get his mobile phone while the officers were contacting support agencies, but when he came down, he was pointing a black handgun at the officers, shouting: "Get out of my house."

The officers ran outside and sought cover behind a police car but Whelan followed them, got into a van and started ramming the two police cars, the court was told.

The officers were able to seek cover in a neighbouring house when armed response arrived.

The van was swiftly located and armed officers used tactical contact to bring it to a stop. Whelan was pulled out of the vehicle and arrested.

Officers also found a black BB revolver in the foot well and a shotgun was recovered from his house along with a large amount of cash.

He pleaded guilty to possessing an imitation firearm with intent to cause fear of violence, possessing a firearm without a certificate, two counts of having a bladed article in a public place, dangerous driving, driving without a licence and driving without insurance to the offences and was sentenced at Nottingham Crown Court on Wednesday (8 July 2020).

Detective Constable Tim Baker, who led the investigation, said: "Clearly we recognise that Whelan was suffering from mental health issues when officers visited him that day but we cannot condone this violent and abusive behaviour. The officers were just trying to help him. It's also clear that he was conducting criminal activity by having the illegal firearms in his home. To our mind, he is a dangerous individual and we're glad he has been held to account for his crimes."

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