A man was said to have acted on impulse in a falling out over a relatively small amount of money, firing an air rifle twice at a former friend’s house windows.

Daniel Newman received an immediate prison sentence for the angry response to a message from the other man in what was described as a relatively “minor” dispute.

The 37-year-old defendant, of Faber Close, Newton Aycliffe, admitted charges of possessing a firearm with intent to cause a fear of violence and criminal damage, on the day he was to have gone on trial, in June, having originally faced the slightly more serious offence of possessing a firearm with intent to endanger life.

His pleas were accepted by the prosecution and the case was adjourned for sentence following preparation of a background report by the Probation Service.

(Image: Durham Constabulary)

Christopher Rose, prosecuting, told the sentencing hearing that the charges arose from an incident in Hatfield Road, Newton Aycliffe, at 6.30pm on March 20, 2023.

Mr Rose said it stemmed from a dispute with a man regarded previously as a friend of the defendant.

The complainant was hanging washing over a radiator in an upstairs bedroom where his teenage son was present at the time.

Mr Rose said they saw the defendant’s BMW pulling up outside the house before he got out carrying what appeared to have been an air rifle.

He discharged the weapon twice in the direction of the complainant who ducked down in the bedroom.

The man who was the apparent target ran downstairs intending to challenge Newman, but he had driven off in the meantime.

When arrested Newman told police the “weapon” was a blowpipe which police would find in his shed.

A search of the defendant’s house and shed failed to uncover a blowpipe, but an air rifle was recovered from the back seat of his BMW.

Audio on closed circuit tv footage from an address in Hatfield Road featured the sound of two gunshots being fired.

One of the shots was said to have damaged a window of the house.

(Image: The Northern Echo)

Mr Rose told the court the defendant’s record includes a similar offence of possessing an offensive weapon, an air weapon, arising from a pub row in Windsor, Berkshire, for which he received a suspended prison sentence, in 2010.

In his impact statement, the victim of the latest offence, a former soldier who experienced tours of Northern Ireland and Afghanistan in his service career, said he suffered with symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety and stress, which were exacerbated by the incident.

It resulted in him leaving the job he was in at the time, as he felt unable to cope in the aftermath of the shooting.

Caroline McGurk, in mitigation, said the aim of her mitigation was to enable the defendant to retain his liberty, perhaps with the imposition of a suspended sentence.

She said his work and family commitments meant that several other people would be impacted if he was to receive an immediate prison sentence.

“He accepts he simply did not think of the consequences when he drove around to the victim’s house.

“He said he felt there was a threat to his family, a threat of violence he took very seriously.

“It caused him, on the spur of the moment, to drive around to the victim’s house and do what he did.

“It was a stupid thing to do.

“He accepts he has learned a valuable lesson.”

Miss McGurk said the defendant has gone ten years' offence-free, and, so, for a decade has been, “a law-abiding member of the community.”

She added: “He has expressed genuine remorse.

“He wishes he did not behave as he did that evening.”

Judge Nathan Adams told the defendant: “What started as a minor dispute over a relatively small sum of money in which you said he made threats, your response was completely out of proportion.

“You fired twice at his house and smashed a window, a quite deliberate action on your part.

“You clearly intended to cause some significant fear on your part.

“I’m satisfied you intended to maximise fear and distress, deliberately firing at someone’s house when you knew they were present.

“I accept it was short-lived and done on impulse.”

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Judge Adams said anyone behaving in that manner must expect to receive an immediate prison sentence.

Imposing a three-year sentence, of which the defendant must serve up to half in custody before being released on licence, the judge also made Newman subject of an indefinite restraining order, forbidding him from contact or approaching the victim.

Judge Adams also ordered forfeiture and destruction of the air rifle.