PC 'shot during armed robbery'
A policewoman was fortunate not to be killed or seriously wounded when she was gunned down during an armed robbery at a pub in Lancashire, a jury has been told.
The early morning raid at the Hospital Inn in Bamber Bridge involved brutality towards the staff and culminated in the attempted murder of dog handler Pc Katie Johnson as the raiders tried to escape.
Two balaclava-clad men entered the premises and threatened to shoot two female cleaners and the couple who ran the pub, Preston Crown Court heard.
Landlord Anthony Gornall managed to call 999 seconds before he was attacked by the raiders. The robbers tied all four up and left them face down in the bathroom of the pub's living quarters as they made off with more than £12,000 in cash.
Anthony Cross QC, prosecuting, said Pc Johnson was among a number of officers who arrived at the scene of the raid on New Year's Eve in 2007 and confronted one of the robbers, Wayne McDonald, as he stepped out of the Hospital Inn.
Mr Cross said: "She saw a large man emerge. It was McDonald. He stopped in his tracks upon seeing the officer. He was plainly not expecting the police."
He added: "She shouted at him to stay where he was. He shouted something back, simultaneously producing a sawn-off shotgun. Immediately he raised it to shoulder height, pointed it at her and shot her. She received an injury to her left thigh. The gunman had used a deadly weapon. It was but good fortune that she was not killed or seriously wounded."
Mr Cross said his fellow armed robber, David Tyrell, 39, of Lions Drive, Swinton, "literally went to ground" in a bid to make a getaway later in the day. He dug a hole near a timber merchants and covered himself with tarpaulin as he hid inside for more than 12 hours in the freezing cold, the court heard.
The prosecutor added that McDonald and Tyrell collaborated with planners Rudolph Mancini and an "inside man", Peter Plaskowski, who was employed as a chef at the pub.
McDonald and Tyrell deny the attempted murder and wounding with intent of Pc Johnson. Tyrell has pleaded guilty to the robbery of £12,308 from the pub and possession of a handgun. McDonald denies robbery along with Mancini, 55, of Division Lane, Blackpool, and Plaskowski, 28, of Dean Street, Bamber Bridge. McDonald has also pleaded not guilty to possessing a sawn-off shotgun and a pistol.
chester standard
