He was once a ‘very skilled marksman’
Brian Hoyle appeared at Hull Crown Court(Image: Hull Live)
An enraged pensioner fired a pistol towards a group of women and girls after they laughed when their dog fouled on a lawn outside his bungalow. Brian Hoyle had been a “very skilled marksman” in the past and the group heard him shouting “Why do you let your dog s*** on my lawn?” before he fired the silver pistol.
The women and teenagers were left “in a state of shock” after they suddenly heard what they thought was a bullet hitting a nearby garage shutter, Hull Crown Court heard. Hoyle, 73, of Spring Bank West, Hull, admitted possessing a firearm with intent to cause fear of violence on April 14 last year.
Holly Thompson, prosecuting, said that a woman and her daughter were walking to the local shops at about 6pm. They had the two daughters of one of them, aged 18 and 16, with them as well as a dog.
The group walked past the home of Hoyle, who was a neighbour. He was sitting in his garden with his wife. The dog fouled near Hoyle’s home and the group started to laugh.
Hoyle shouted: “Why do you let your dog s*** on my lawn?” The group saw a “silver metallic object” on his lap. The women cleaned up after the dog, seemingly using a carrier bag, and carried on walking past his home.
They intended to cross the road to put the bag into a bin. “They heard what they believed was, and the prosecution say was, a bullet hitting a garage shutter across the road,” said Miss Thompson.
Hoyle denied that he fired the pellet-using air pistol and he claimed that he was merely “degassing” it but the prosecution did not accept this. The women were left “in a state of shock” and, a few seconds later, they heard the same sound. “They started walking down the street quickly to escape the scene,” said Miss Thompson.
The police were alerted and they went to Hoyle’s home. He answered his front door and they decided that he did not pose a threat to them. His home was searched and two weapons were found – a large silver John Wayne revolver, with ammunition, and a black machine pistol, also with ammunition.
Hoyle later said: “I am guilty. I have shot some b*****d. I’ll tell you what. I’m going to get him. See you in 20 years. I have shot someone.” He later claimed that what he said was “all bull” because he was intoxicated at the time.
He said that he had fired the gun five consecutive times while “degassing” it. One of the women later said that she had been left anxious by what Hoyle did and she was worried about what he might do in the future.
The woman’s mother said that, at the time, she was extremely upset and frightened but, since Hoyle’s arrest, there had been a clear change in his behaviour and he seemed to have reconsidered his actions and become a “much nicer man”.
David Godfrey, mitigating, said that Hoyle had no previous convictions and he had been a hardworking man who previously worked as a printer. “He is a good guy,” said Mr Godfrey.
“He has contributed robustly to society. He has done a very foolish thing. Back in the day, he was a very skilled marksman.
“He took part in competitions in Europe with air weapons, something he had a passion for in the past.” He had the two guns as keepsakes.
Hoyle pleaded guilty at an early stage. He claimed that there had been “some antisocial behaviour with dogs fouling on his lawn” in the past.
“That doesn’t minimise or excuse what he has done,” said Mr Godfrey. “He wishes to God that he had never taken the pistol outside, something he wishes had never happened.”
Hoyle was given a nine-month suspended prison sentence, with no conditions. He was given a five-year restraining order.
Did you know you can make Hull Live a preferred source of Hull news in Google, which will mean you get more of our breaking news, exclusives, and must-read stories straight away? Here’s more information about what this means and how to do it – you can also do it straight away by clicking here.