Shotgun was fired to 'scare love rival' (From Bournemouth Echo)

Shotgun was fired to 'scare love rival'

4:49pm Tuesday 14th August 2012 in News By Stephen Bailey

A MAN fired a shotgun after going to confront a “love rival” at his ex-partner’s home in Poole, a trial heard yesterday.

Gary Reid, 52, of Holdenhurst Road in Bournemouth, denies a charge of possessing a firearm with intent to endanger life.

Bournemouth Crown Court heard he went to Teresa Mytton’s home in Rossmore Road, Parkstone, on March 30.

New partner David Hewitt, a plasterer, told the jury he was heading out of the house to get tools from his van when he saw Reid a couple of paces inside the house with the gun.

He told the jury: “I thought to myself ‘is that real?’ “And I thought ‘I am not going to hang about to find out’. So I turned and ran down to the right hand side of the corridor and he took a shot and the pellets hit the left hand side of the wall.”

Prosecutor Stuart Ellacott said Reid and Ms Mytton had separated around 18 months beforehand and had a son together.

Reid phoned Mr Hewitt that morning, said Mr Ellacott, and gave Mr Hewitt his blessing for the relationship.

But he allegedly added ‘if any harm comes to my son then I will shoot you in the face’.

The prosecution said that at around 11am Reid came to the house, which Mr Hewitt was refurbishing.

He was armed with a sawn-off shotgun and fired it, hitting an inside wall, as Mr Hewitt ran away, it was alleged.

When Reid came into the kitchen, Mr Hewitt and a friend managed to wrestle the shotgun away, the court heard. It went off once more during the struggle, said Mr Ellacott.

After his arrest, Reid was said to have told police he brought the gun and fired into the wall “simply in order to scare the love rival”.

Mr Ellacott produced the shotgun and pointed it at the jury, asking them: “Do you need to do any more than that to frighten someone?”

The trial continues.