Anthony Lascelles has been jailed following the violent robbery
(Picture: Met Police)Three men have been jailed after an 11-year-old boy was shot during a violent burglary in Upminster.
Anthony Lascelles, 34, of Hitchin Close, was sentenced to 18 years with an extended licence period of five years at Snaresbrook Crown Court on Friday. He had previously pleaded guilty to the robbery.
Christopher Sargent, 28, of Macaulay Road, pleaded guilty to robbery and was sentenced to 15 years, with an extended licence period of five years.
Ajaypal Singh, 28, of Banks Way, was found guilty of robbery at a trial in November 2021.
He had pleaded guilty to possession with intent to supply and possession of a pointed/bladed article. In total, he was sentenced to 20 years, with an extended licence period of five years.
Police officers and the London Ambulance Service attended an address on Kerry Drive in May 2020 and found a child suffering from a gunshot injury.
A man, believed to be in his 40s, who police later said was the child’s father, was also found at the address with cuts to his head.
Detectives established that the man had opened the front door to a person who was later identified as Sargent.
He had claimed to be a delivery driver who had left a parcel on the doorstep.
As he bent down to collect the parcel, he was knocked to the ground by a group of men who forced entry to the property.
They demanded the homeowner hand over any money he had at the address and threatened to harm his 11-year-old son if the demands were not met.
During the incident, a shotgun that was legally held at the address was discharged, resulting in a gunshot wound to the 11-year-old child’s shoulder.
Thankfully, the child’s injuries were not life-threatening or life-changing.
The group left the property with around £20,000 worth of jewellery and watches.
Detective Darren Warner said: "This result is the conclusion of a complex investigation into a serious and violent crime that had a significant impact on the local community. It also left a family, including a young child, terrified.
"They will never be able to forget what happened to them that night.
“I am grateful to the members of the public who came forward to assist the investigation - in the Metropolitan Police we know that we are most effective when we police with the support of the public, working together to tackle those causing the most harm.”
